I-Magazine 3 #11 by I Magazine Bali

TRAVEL,FASHION,ART,SURF,LIFESTYLE,BALI

WANDERLUST DEEP INTO WEST PAPUA JARED MEL GETS INTIMATE LUCID KUTA DREAMING ANYTHING LEFT IN BORNEO? RAISING BABYLON

courtesy of Nomad Images

STYLE

FEATURES

REVIEW

PRODUCTS

THEWORLDRED 30PAINTING JARED MELL BY JED SMITH

I - RECOMMENDS

LUCID KUTA DREAMS

NEWS

FOUR PAGES OF GOODNESS

DAVIDMURRELLSHOOTS,KEITASTYLES

WANDERLUSTETHOS 36THEWANDERNLUSTING RESPONSIBLY

PHOTO FEATURE

SUMMER 48 OUTRUNNING WONDERLUSTGONEWRONG

@ SEA CIRCUS 28 HALLOWEEN SCARY STUFF

FINLIGHTUPTHENIGHT 50SINGLE ULUWATUNIGHTSURFINGBYVESTAL

56 68 COVER: LUCID KUTA DREAMS MODEL: TATSIANA FOR SO WANTED AGENCY PHOTO BY DAVID MURRELL STYLED BY KOOLKEITA

WEST PAPUA

BABYLON RAISING

GODDESSOFBABYLONINTERVIEW

THE SUMBAWA STORY WANDERINGINTOMYSTERYAND HISTORY

ON THE ROAD

KATIE STONE IN INDIA

LAW OFTHE JUNGLE 77 THENAVICULA FORTHECAUSEIN BORNEO

AND A BUNCH OF PARTY PEOPLE

WRITERSANDREADERS 70 UBUD ALLTHEACTIONFROMTHEFESTIVAL

EDITORS NOTE

WANDERLUST “The paradox is irresoluble: the less one culture communicates with another, the less likely they are to be corrupted, one by the other; but on the other hand, the less likely it is, in such conditions, that the respective emissaries of these cultures will be able to seize the richness and significance of their diversity. The alternative is inescapable: either I am a traveler in ancient times, and faced with a prodigious spectacle which would be almost entirely unintelligible to me and might, indeed, provoke me to mockery and disgust; or I am a traveler of my own day, hastening in search of a vanished reality. In either case, I am the loser… for today, as I go groaning among the shadows, I miss, inevitably, the spectacle that is now taking place.” From Triste Tropique, by Claude Levi-Strauss. There is no other cure for the diseased desire for Bali to be something other than what it is, than the realization we are not even living an illusion, we’re wishing for an illusion. Here at I-Mag we’re dedicated to chronicling the spectacle that is taking place now, in the shadows of creaking construction that blocks the setting sun and amongst the smell of cempaka, sewage and spices. What better way to come to terms with everything that humans are? Imperfect, smelly, makers and brokers of madness and art and conduits of nothingness? Than to take a look at what we have, the options spread before us more numerous than stars in the sky. This issue is called Wanderlust, for those who were born here, those who have wandered here to stay or for only a few days, and for those who need to go and soon. Wanderlust is a compulsive need to move, born out of an internal restlessness- one may have the simple wanderlust to explore other tracts of earth, or the more complex need to keep moving or face death. And the need to arrive back to ourselves, and arrive and arrive and arrive. Susan Sontag, describing the writing of perennial walker-loner and scandalously neglected genius, Robert Walser, said that along with being one of the first modernist writers addressing existential unease, he also “turned time into space by walking.” This opens up a whole range of possibilities. Might we turn time into space by wandering in buses, trains, scooters and flying tin cans? Or does something different happen, more akin to a grid or a pattern? Maybe we don’t have to be a genius or a burn-out to enjoy not just other dimensions, but to meddle with them as a birthright that comes with consciousness. We certainly turn time into synapses, but we could just as plausibly we also turn time into love. Walser died alone in winter on one of his long walks, on leave from the local mental institute. Far from this being a “tragedy,” his writing that best evokes every possibility of the universe is, “to know so much, to have seen so much, and to say nothing, just about nothing,” is the only starting point for life. So we turn time into space, time into thought, time into chemical happiness, or time into love, through wandering itself or by the ability to feel our restlessness and stay put for a second. Humans haven’t been In this issue we have an interview with Jared Mell by Jed Smith (page 30) which shows what one surfer did with nothing and how he’s changing the entire aesthetic values of the surf industry, a conversation with two lovers who have managed to grow roots after years of wandering and create a living out of cris-crossing space (GOB p 52), and an expansive feature on the people of West Papua (p 40). We also have a definite section on The Wanderlust Ethos (p 36). Who can blame us for not being able to sit still? In light of man’s evolution, we have not been sedentary for the long- at the most basic neurological level we are programmed to roam. But maybe if we can create great paper castles in the sky, then we can manage to stay put for a second. If we allow our mind to roam, our love can stay- we don’t miss the spectacle taking place nor do we lose focus on the dirt under our nails like icing on a cake.

- Mariah

CREDITS

PUBLISHER

(PT MITRA MANDIRI SEMP URNA) TRAFFIC@WWMEDIA.ASIA REG. NO. 65/HK.HM/IV/BITD/2008

CONTRIBUTORS

ANDREW,IQI,MARIAH,KATIES,SAM,KOOLKEITA,KATIE A,JED,ELECTRA,SEEWAH,ROBI,BIANKA,ANISSA,ANNA, SWATHIMAA,BLAIR,FABRIZIO,DAVID,BETHANY,JAMES

EDITOR MARIAH DESIGN SAM IQI ADMINISTRATION MANAGER OCHA (TRAFFIC@WWMEDIA.ASIA) ACCOUNT MANAGER (ANDREW@I-MAG-ONLINE.COM) DISTRIBUTION ADHI KETUT SALES ENQUIRIES P +62 857 9295 3502 ANDREW@I-MAG-ONLINE.COM VIEWS EXPRESSED ARE NOT NECESSARILY THOSE OF THE EDITOR’S AND PUBLISHER’S. ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT ©2008 PT . MITRA MANDIRI SEMPURNA. THE PUBLISHER WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENTS ON IMAGES SUPPLIED BY

INSIDER VIEW Check out the updated and re-vamped www.i-mag-online.com, Andy has been working hard on it! // If you didn’t attend the I-Mag x Navicula x Cast party at Mantra on November 3rd, well you missed it, we gave away a surfboard, lingerie, jewelry, villa nights, Revolver Cafe grub and more. Stay tuned until next month for the full report// The photoshoot this month by David was his FIRST after brain surgery… guess the tumor picked the wrong guy to fuck with // Amo spa official gives the best shoulder massages, a nail technician did in 5 minutes what hours of massage elsewhere had failed to do previously to get those knots out // How fucking hot has it been? Jeez, rain already, we’re ready for it // The Indonesian Surfing Championship awards banquet put the ASP to shame; held at the W and the speeches were short and sweet. Bali knows how to do things right. Ps Raditya Rondi won! // Uh, hate to say this, but the news Beachwalk in Kuta is kind of nice. Balinale film festival was sick! // Check out www.balibelly.tv for all things surfy in Indo // And next month’s issue is the SURF issue - Religion, Sacrilege and Kook. Don’t go anywhere, we’ll be right back after this!

“THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE. BUT NOT UNTIL IT IS FINISHED WITH YOU.” DAVID FOSTER WALLACE INFINITE JEST

courtesy of Nomad Images

I - RECOMMENDS

GODDESS OF BABYLON

SHIVALOKA SACRED STONES & SEEDS Shivaloka makes stunning necklaces and bracelets out of rudakshra seeds and sacred malas, with gemstones. Worn by spiritual leaders and rulers of India, these power objects open a direct connection with the Divine, increase wisdom, protect from the forces of negativity, and awaken Shakti, one’s own spiritual power. Founded in 2009, Shivaloka was soon picked up by various connasseurs such as Roberto Cavalli, Kenzo’s Antonion Marras and Stephane Rolland. We’d recommend the Bhakti piece, for “heaven on earth”- healing the heart, true balance, and knowing and living the highest spiritual path. The perfect accompaniment for the journey. http://www.omshivaloka.com

If you’re going to wander anywhere, whether with a destination in mind or with the express interest in getting lost, there is really no better gear than Goddess o Babylon. Beautifully made- as good as it looks on the hanger, these are the kind of clothes that look even better ON. The unique concept store is the collaboration of fashion designer Chantel Barber and her partner, creative director of the brand, Blair Beattie. Australians at heart, the pair has called Bali their second home for several years. Inspired by the rich culture of travel, the brand epitomizes bohemian luxe with an alluringly styled chic. Personally, I like to wear my kimono on my rebuilt 60’s café racer style 200cc Honda- keeps the sun off and creates a nice floral contrail as I’m shredding through the rice padis headed north out of babylon. They have a new shop open in Oberoi- think earthy opulent maxi dresses, blouses with vintage lace and leather tooling and gypsy vagrant mischief.

Babylon Bali #4 Jalan Oberoi Seminyak

DRINKING AT CIRCLE K Ok first of all, I don’t condone stopping at Circle Kit was started in Texas and is owned by someone in Canada. I try to stop at local warungs whenever possible. That being said, it’s a sick place to rage with some real live locals. There used to be a party every weekend at my local Circle K on Jalan Dynapura, and all the boys would get together and drink beer and eat peanuts, and we would rock up wheedling on mushrooms and they’d make fun of us in the tender Indonesian style that always makes you feel good, never bad. Indonesian language not required. This is something Kuta actually has over the scene in Seminyak- spots where people aren’t afraid of getting down and dirty and chill on the streets. So Circle K, Mini-Mart, or local warung, doesn’t matter- remember to keep it real every once in a while.

62 361 207 3307

www.circlekindonesia.com

babylonbali@goddessofbabylon.com.au

www.facebook.com/circlekindonesia

I - RECOMMENDS

SEA CIRCUS COFFEE, QUOTES AND GELATO HIDDEN BUKIT BEACHES We’d like to recommend searching for hidden beaches on the bukit- there are still a few sandy strips where you can relax and not see a single other soul all day. We are not telling you where these beaches are, but we are recommending getting off the beaten, concreted and paved path. The beaches are clean, there are shells and turquoise plasma to swim in; and this time heaven is free of charge. Hell, these places are so good we don’t even want you to go there. But we have a moral obligation to tell you to get out of the Seminyak bubble at some point- and there are still plenty of beautiful secluded beaches in Bali so go out and get lost.

Sea Circus is a perennial favorite, and still the best and only place to get coffee and quotes. It’s kind of like getting refueled and enlightened and soothed all at the same time. With quotes like “If you have good thoughts, they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely,” by Roald Dahl, “The real love is a man who can thrill you by kissing your forehead” by Marilyn Monroe and “Drive fast on empty streets with nothing in mind except falling in love and not getting arrested” by Hunter S. Thompson, it’s the perfect place to prepare for the journey, or just to enjoy the moment.

DRIFTER BOOKS & BACKPACKS Drifter is the best place for the kind of bad boys you could take home to mom and who could buy you nice things and do and you actually like them and boho hipster hotties who do their own thing and are incapable of doing anything else and are loved unconditionally for it. Drifter’s library is the tits (or was, before I lost my kindle a year ago- I’m staring at fifteen of their top selection as I type this, most of them waterlogged) with selections like The Surf Trip Survival Guide- this book starts where magicseaweed leaves off. There’s really no other place to go before a big trip. No seriously. I stopped there and so did most of my other friends before we all left for the boat trip last July- non chemical shit storm zinc and spf, rad leashes, the written word, bubbley single fins and the best guns. Plus you’ll probably into Robby M. No point going elsewhere.

22 jl.kayu aya - seminyak Email : ringmaster@seacircus-bali.com

Jl. Oberoi #50, Seminyak - 80361

Phone : (0361) 738667

0361 703477, 0813 3700 8628

www.facebook.com/seacircusbali

Email : info@driftersurf.com

www.seacircus-bali.com

www.driftersurf.com

NEWS

THE ART OF BODY AND TOAST GALLERY OPENING IN NOVEMBER There’s something happening on Jalan Mernadi, the rumbling of something huge, something groundbreaking. Well, that might be the excavator, but The Art of Body- Bali’s boutique fitness house and the first to offer Pole Dancing classes in Indonesia, and TOAST- a gallery and international standard printing room, are opening soon, and its going to be amazing.

CONGRATS NIKKI VAN DIJK, WINNER OF ASP’S WORLD JUNIOR TITLE On October 12, at the Oakley Pro Junior World Championships, Aussie Nikki Van Dijk had a convincing win over highly rated South African surfer Bianca Buitendag in flawless barreling surf at Keramas. Van Dijk held the lead for the whole final, using her smooth style unleash some crisp and powerful carves. She is the first Victorian surfer to win as ASP World Title event and the 17 year old was ecstatic after the 30 minute final showdown. “I can’t believe it- I’m lost for words.” Buitendag was a standout surfer all event, using powerful backhand surfing to storm through the draw that was stacked with the best junior surfers in the world. Jack Freestone won the men’s junior event. Keep a lookout for Van Dijk and Buitendag on the women’s WCT soon!

MAIDENLOVE INTRODUCES TIGERFRAME BY KOMALA The Maidenlove shop, on Jalan Kayu Aya 8 in Seminyak- Oberoi, has a sassy foxy new collection by Tigerframe called, “Lets Have Fun.” Featuring necklaces, rings and earrings by the Australian designer Komala Frame, Tigerframe is a beautiful combination of instinctual design and careful artistry. Komala’s signature work is inspired by mysterious creatures such as the tiger and the horse and glint feminity. Born on a mountain, growing up in the rainforest and traveling about in a green combi van called Gerkin, she has worked in the theater and circus and bring that wild energy to her jewelry. www.maidenlove.net

LIFE WITHOUT ANDY Life Without Andy does the best party photos in town, bar none. We forgot to credit them in the last few issues- but that’s where our killer event photos come from. Sorry, we love you! Check them out at www.lifewithoutandy.com for not just party photos of you and your hottest friends, but also backstage wrestling reportage and photoshoots with the likes of Janelle, Sarhara, Breauna, Izzy and Natali. Damn.

ACOS COOLKAS AT KUDETA On Friday October 5, KuDeTa hosted Acos Coolkas on the decks. Acos Coolas are Konstantin Atomas and Vasily Basalaev from Omsk, Russia, in Southern Siberia. Their music transmits the creator’s micro-cosmos to the listeners and helps everyone discover their own universe.Acos CoolKAs tries to imitate ‘that’ fantastic feeling of Outer Space which they’d heard in the music of their idols, Space, Zodiac, Kraftwerk and Daft Punk. But when ‘that’ first Cosmos experience came, they quickly found ‘their’ sound. They soon realized that in order to find the Cosmos, you have to look ‘inside’ yourself first. That miracle has a place in all our day-to-day lives and it’s essential to see and recognize it, so that the smallest of things can grow and radiate with happiness. Their KuDeTa show was dope.

BETTY BU Wholesale / Retail Jl Laksmana No.13, Oberoi Jl Raya Seminyak No.24, Seminyak Jl Arjuna No.55, Jl 66, Legian Ph (0361) 730070 bettybucollection@hotmail.com

AN ARTIST IS SOMEBODY WHO PRODUCES THINGS THAT PEOPLE DON’T NEED TO HAVE. ANDY WARHOL TOP ROW FEATURES ALL GOODNESS FROM ATTICUS, SECOND ROW ALL FROM BETTY BU, THIRD ROW TEES FROM DRIFTER, THEN YA GOT 3 VERSIONS OF ELECTRIC SUNGLASSES & MACBETH SHOES.

AN ARTIST IS SOMEBODY WHO PRODUCES THINGS THAT PEOPLE DON’T NEED TO HAVE. ANDY WARHOL TOP SECTION IS 5 ITEMS FROM INSIGHT, AT BOTTOM YOU HAVE PALMA DRESS & A PALMA TOP. MAIN PHOTO COURTESY OF BAMBOO BLONDE

3 ITEMS ON TOP ROW ALL FROM PALMA, SECOND ROW FROM TOP AND BLACK/WHITE LONG DRESS FROM SHAKUHACHI, BOTTOM CLOTHING ITEMS FROM GODDESS OF BABYLON, THEN CHECK THE HEADPHONES FROM SKULL CANDY

AMAZING BEAD NECKLACES FROM SHIVALOKA & STUNNING GOLDEN RINGS, NECLACE AND EARINGS FROM MAIDEN LOVE

EVENT

HALLOWEEN AT SEA CIRCUS 27.10.12 PHOTOS BY JAMES HEAL SEACIRCUS-BALI.COM

EVENT

F E AT U R E

I-Mag: Jared Mell! How goes it, man? Jared Mell: Hey! What’s happening? I’m in Biarritz, man. I: Yeah right. What doing?

PAINTING THE WORLD RED JARED MELL WORDS JED SMITH

In this age of personal branding, subliminal marketing and mega-corporations with their fingers dipped in every stinkin’ little sub-culture, Jared Mell is a surfer you can trust. His story reads somewhere between an episode of the OC and Easyrider (think booze, weed, good times and some very bad ones), and gets extra points from the fact he funds his adventures for the most part from his gig painting houses for Al Knost’s dad back in Newport. When we found Jared he was in Biarritz for an experimental longboarding event (think art installations, six surfers to a room, booze, weed, sex and so on) and over the course of an hour told us about a troubled adolescence in which he was arrested for beating up his mum; the patriarch of the family he never had, Alex Knost; a sexual philosophy not dissimilar from Dominique Strauss Kahn’s; surf culture; and financing his dream one undercoat at a time.

JM: I’m at a surf contest. There’s a bunch of my best girl friends here - Jen Smith, Kass (Kassia Meador) and a few others for a Roxy contest. We’re just hanging out, cruising, shooting. Might head down to Spain to do some surf trips. It’s real cool here. Roxy brought a bunch of artists to do an art show down here at the beach, like an installation. Every room is kind of different with its own little twist on it. Everyone splits a room, like my friend Colin all these older surf style paintings and my friend Brendan Lomax went fully 80s on it with full (Jeff) Spicoli portraits, neon graphics and colours and wild shit everywhere. I: That’s sounds very different to my experience of surf contests. I spent two years covering that WCT and found them to be incredibly banal affairs. JM: We haven’t been hanging out with the shortboard girls much. They’re here too but they’re on their tour thing. It’s funny to see them when you’re checking the waves early in the morning and they’re going on runs and staying in shape while the longboard girls are all hungover and passed out in their room. There’s like six or seven of (the longboard girls) in this one flat. We just all cruise together, have dinners, party and hang out at night. I: Sounds very communal. That’s not something you really get with our sport these days, is it? JM: It is. It’s cool to see. The only contest that I’ve been too that is similar, or actually better in my eyes, is the Vans one that Joel (Tudor, creator of The Duct Tape Invitational) does.

F E AT U R E

I: Is that the way contests should be?

I: Tell me about the genesis of this Surfabilly range you’ve released with Insight.

JM: With longboarding, yeah cause it was always like that with the old contests. It was a competition but they seemed to be having way more fun than the pro shortboarders now. They freak out if they lose and it might get the best of them, you know, I need a win for my sponsors or to destroy the spot and get my name out there. I dunno about the other kids that longboard, but for me it’s whatever - just having fun with friends and doing what we do. If one of us does good in the contest and (our sponsors) help us out with stuff then that’s cool but I don’t think people have the same mentality as shortboarders with training and being on top of my game.

JM: It originated from when we were hanging out and having a tattoo party with all these kids who were younger that live in Costa Mesa. I was younger too and you have to be 18 to get a tattoo in the States but our friend had a gun and was just drawing up stuff and (Surfabilly) was just an overlook of everything we do back home. A lifestyle of just having fun and not taking life so serious where it can get you off surfing sometimes: Oh I have to do this or go down to the contest and hang out. I have to be quiet tonight so I can show up tomorrow and do my best. It’s more about an open, free lifestyle and having fun and getting to meet new people.

I: It’s pretty crazy that you’re getting paid to live a lifestyle you’d be leading anyway. How is it profitable for anyone for you guys to be living that lifestyle?

“It’sjustapartofmylife.EversinceIgotinto itit’stheonlythingIeverwantedtodo.Asmy role,Idunno,it’shardtosay.Ijustwannaget peoplestokedonitandopenuptheirmind.’

JM: You mean sponsor us? I: Yeah. JM: I dunno, I guess people look up to other people and want to see their style and how they surf and to hang out with them. Most of the kids in the contest are really open people and meet people and stoke them out on the brand they surf for and whatever they’re doing for the brand just by hanging out and surfing with them and making people aware of what they’re doing with the company. Whether it’s friends playing music, or doing art, or surfing, or hanging out and having fun and surfing with people from all over just building friends with people from all over, random people, that you wouldn’t expect to hang out with and bringing them closer together. It seems like a family thing almost. And people get to experience that firsthand. We just want to hang out with everyone, have a good time, see what other people are into and experience different cultures.

I: And aesthetically? JM: The whole Rockabilly scene is so interesting and attractive to the eye. The surfers back then were in that style of the 50s with slick backed hair, cool cars that were beat up, hot rods too. I see a lot of kids like that in Australia where they have that old style, hot rods, babes on the beach, rad tattoos and hair dos and having fun and enjoying it I guess. I: What do you prefer about that era of surf culture to now? JM: Right now there is everything. There are some similarities because some people are into it and they go back. The general

F E AT U R E

surf culture is more free and open today and has a lot of interesting personalities. But there are a lot of similar styles as well because there are so many surfers and they’re all trying to do the same thing. Back then, it was just surfing because they loved it and they were all hanging with their friends and skipping to surf and hang at the beach, have fun and live the life. There are still people like that but the mentality of competing takes it away, so I don’t do many contests because it puts you in that state of mind. I: Do you think the way surfing has been marketed over the last ten to 20 years has attracted a certain type of person? JM: It almost seems to me, like, I did surf team in high school, right. Our surf team would go out surf for an hour for class. And we’d have contests between the different schools. The other schools that we’d surf with like San Clemente, they were almost a football team. They would go train, they’d be out in the water and be like, “See this guy, we gotta paddle this way around him to block him so you can get the wave and if he takes off he gets an interference.” They always seemed like they had a strategy or some shit. They knew what surfer was good so they’d try and take him out like in Basketball when Kobe’s (Bryant) on the court. I was like, that’s fucked man, that doesn’t even look like fun. You might as well go out and try out for the football team. I: It’s interesting that surfing has moved so far beyond being a fringe culture that it’s now home to its own set of sub cultures.

Most people in Southern Cali wouldn’t even do that. My friends have seen Edward Norton surfing in Bali. One of the guys in Basque country said they had the bass player from Metallica here surfing with them. They took him out in 15 faces at Guethary and he was just charging. The hardcore surfers in Basque country, you don’t even know they surf. They’re just gardeners or painters, people who live normal lives and all of a sudden they’re this crazy surfer. I: But sub-cultures only tend to exist once the status quo becomes boring and cheesy, right? What is the cheeseball, status quo in surfing? JM: Most of the guys who are mainstream surfers are really good surfers so you can’t really put them down because they’re amazing to watch. There is something about them that makes them attractive to people to be a part of that. I don’t know if there is anything cheesy about someone surfing but definitely the way they act and their personalities, there is something cheesy about that I guess. I: As someone who is paid to represent surf culture, what do you see as your role? JM: It’s just a part of my life. Ever since I got into it it’s the only thing I ever wanted to do. As my role, I dunno, it’s hard to say. I just wanna get people stoked on it and open up their mind. You don’t have to be one way in surfing. You can be into whatever you want. I like to leave things more open. I don’t like to say I’m in this sub culture. I don’t only ride longboards - I ride fishes, quads, I’ll ride an Alaia once in a while, I’ll ride whatever. I just wanna surf. I’m a surfer. There are so many different fills and buzzes you can get from surfing. I just wanna show people more and open their minds. That’s how I see myself.

JM: There’s so many, it’s endless. I have friends in San Francisco who are artists and do graffiti and ride bikes and skate and they go put on wetsuits and surf Ocean Beach when it’s double overhead.

F E AT U R E JM: Yeah, my mum kicked me out when I was 17. Me and her are really strong-headed people. She used to be an alcoholic and I drink quite a bit myself. This one night one of my ex’s came over and we were on our way down to the beach with a few beers. So we’re walking out and my mum is up and she loves her music right, and would listen to the same song over and over and sing it til 3 am. She was in the computer room doing that and she comes out and she’s drunk and mad about something. She’s like “What are you doing? You’re not going nowhere!” We had a big argument. I wasn’t having it. She pushed me and she’s like, “You’re under this house, you do what I say.” I’m like, fuck that. I’m gonna do what I want. I had these three longboards and a single fin that I’d borrowed from Alex (Knost) leaning against the wall and she put them on the floor and stomped on them, broke the glass-ons out of my longboards and pushed the fin box on Alex’s shortboard out the top of the glass. I’m like, “Are you fucking kidding me?” I didn’t know what to do. I was shaking. So I stomped over my longboards because they were already broken and walked by her, opened her Armoire and it had a flat screen her and her husband, who I didn’t like either, had bought. And I just dropkicked the flat screen. I turned around and their jaws literally hit the floor. And I was like that’s what you get. You break my surfboard, I’ll fuck your shit up. Her husband came after me and we started fighting and she tried to break it up and got pushed over and cut her eyebrow. Someone called the cops and they came storming in and pulled me off my step dad and put me in cuffs because they thought I was beating up my mum. They arrest me. I’m sitting there and I’m like how fucked up is this? I got drunk, passed out early and get woken up and I’m thinking I’m gonna get lucky on the beach, now she’s hurt and I’m in handcuffs. But my mum doesn’t wanna see me go to jail and I wasn’t beating up on her. She told the cops and they let me go. The guy she was married too was a fucking idiot. So she has to get stitches and I’m sitting there and can’t believe it happened. Her and her husband come walking up and she says, I never wanna fucken see you again. Fucking get out of here! I was like, really? My mum is gonna say that too me after raising me and making me a man. I just took that as her telling me to get out. I had an old 1962 Dodge Dart at the time and loaded up my boards and some shit and drove to my friends house, drunk a big bottle of alcohol and hung out with some chick. The next day Alex saw me and he’d heard about it. He told me to come live with him. He’d just broken up with a girl that he was in love with and had a place to move in together. He’s a total legend.

I: Legendary shaper and surfer, Robbie Kegel recently said: Classic longboarding has no future - just as shortboarding has no future. When a surfer is ready to take off and is moves to walk (and pose) there’s no wave function or setup dynamic, just as shortboarding experienced decades ago, when the approach was to engage only in the end zone of the wave, to boost tricks. Modern surfing incorporates the full use of waves and functional direction change, harnessing power and poise. What do you make of that? JM: Yeah I get it. He’s saying in this era people are going for one certain thing and they can’t get beyond that. Well, (laughter) Robbie is so funny. He’s just on his own trip and he’s stoked about riding powerful waves and going fast and doing turns, carving round and speed and trimming and being in the pocket and excitement and the rush. He used to do the longboarding thing and walk up to the nose and pose and just stand there. And he’s saying there’s no future in that. He got bored with that and wanted something else. He’s almost gone into a shortboard revolution of his own. He’s not riding a shortboard but he’s just going for speed and power. To kinda label something like that, you can’t really do that. You can’t say surfing has no future, whether it’s longboarding or shortboarding. People have been doing it for so long and it’s only growing and growing around the world. For him to say it has no future, I think there is a future in it all, whatever style. Surfing is fun. That’s why we do it. . I: What were some of your interests and influences growing up? JM: I wasn’t into surfing until I was 14 because I wanted to go in surf class at school. I was like fuck school, I’d rather hangout and surf at the beach. I was really into sports when I was younger. My mum wasn’t into surfing and my dad was a musician.

I: How would you describe your relationship with Al?

I: What does your dad play?

JM: He’s like a full brother to me. We met on surf team (in school) and I didn’t know who he was at all. I was just having a blast getting to meet other people and surf every morning. I had hair to my shoulders, dirty blonde and I was always stoked and probably stoned so I seemed really happy. He’s just the nicest guy and has been so cool and helpful. He doesn’t wanna see any of his friends in a bad situation. If he can help he’ll go out of this way. If I needed money (him and his friends) would help me out because my only income was from working at Jack’s, the surf shop. It was Alex who got me on Insight I think. He got offered a sponsorship to leave RVCA and he can’t because they did everything for him. But he’s like, I know a kid, and he described me to them and Jesse Faen was the CEO at the time and we surfed and hung out and he’s like yeah, “You’re on the team. You’re going got Bali for the campaign.” Right out of school and I’m in Bali. I dreamed of that growing up seeing Gerry (Lopez) and Rory Russell surfing Ulus with no one around. He’s looked after me from day one. And

JM: He plays guitar. He’s amazing. He can play guitar, mandolin, he can read music so he can play piano. My grandpa is a crazy musician too. He plays trumpet, sax, guitar, bass, keyboard. It’s cool to go up there to (northern California) and hangout. I: How did growing up around them affect you? JM: My dad left my mum when I was two so I’d go visit him for a couple of months a year. When I did see him it made me happy that they could be happy playing a piece of wood with six strings on it. It’s so simple yet so complicated. You don’t even know all the different notes and ways to play. You have to sit there and play and figure it out and you can make so many people happy from it. So rad. No wonder guys can do it forever. I: Cheesy question, but do you see a parallel between that and what you do? JM: Kinda, yeah. Longboarding seems so simple but there are so many different things you can do with it and so many different waves and ways you can ride. Some people who don’t know so much about it are like; “He’s just riding a longboard and running up to the nose on a two foot wave. That’s all he can do.” I dunno, I’ve seen different types of longboarding all across the world and you’ve gotta be open to it. I: You experienced some serious turmoil in your late adolescence. Tell us about the time you got arrested for supposedly beating up your mum.

F E AT U R E

then me working with his dad, they’re like another close family that I didn’t really have. I: Describe a week in the life of Jared Mell and Al Knost. JM: Al has this rad house in Costa Mesa and he loves having people over and taking photos and having fun. We have friends who don’t even surf who are just musicians and will come over and play in his backyard. And we’ll have barbecues and just hang out all weekend long. Whatever, you know. It’s really cool and fun and keeps it fresh and interesting and keeps it alive not boring. D: Al was telling me you haven’t had a girlfriend for the last six years. How is that working for you? JM: (Laughter) Yeah, I haven’t. I’ve been hanging out with girls and stuff. I love women. They’re beautiful and awesome but yeah, getting stuck in a relationship… I haven’t found the right one. I’ve tried and found out, you know, Wow, this person might not be for me. And then the one-night flings where you’re like “Hey what’s up? Your cute, I’m cute, lets hang out.” I: With your lifestyle, is unsolicited, no strings attached sex a pre-requisite? JM: No, not really. I’ve hung out with a chick for a couple of weeks at a time (laughter). When I was at home I almost had a couple of girlfriend but something always happens. They go on a trip or I go on a trip. It’s kinda hard. I live in Newport beach dude, c’mon. There’s blonde chicks with fake titties filled with air in their head walking around like dumb asses thinking I want to go to the mall and spend all of daddy’s money or boyfriend’s money. That to me is so fake. There is nothing cool about it. It’s hard to find cool girls in that area. The no strings sex comes with it and it is what is but you know it’s still fun. I’m having fun. I’m not saying I sleep around all the time but I’m not saying I don’t (laughter). It’s just about having fun and enjoying yourself as long as your respectful to other people

and not trying to fuck this person and be like “She was such a slut.” I: From what from what Al and your fellow Insight team rider, Warren Smith told me, you have a sexual philosophy not dissimilar from Dominique Strauss Kahn. JM: From who? I: Ah, don’t worry. JM: No, tell me. I: Okay, tell me about the time you made love with ******* the night her and Alex broke up, at the same time you were Al’s flatmate, and while he was in the house. JM: (Laughter) No he wasn’t in the house. Did he tell you that? (Laughter) What did Alex say? No, he wasn’t. Oh my god! That sucks because I don’t wanna name a girl. You couldn’t ask for a better friend. She’s so rad and so cool and I hate talking about girls like that. Alex and ****** hung out for a bit and were going on dates and shit and he got over her and one night, she comes over and he doesn’t wanna hang out with her. He wanted me to make up something for him so he could hang out with another girl. He doesn’t like being confrontational with girls when it comes to breaking up with them. He went out with some friends maybe to a show or they were playing because that was when he was in the Japanese Motors. She came over and we both smoke weed so I was like, “Wanna smoke a spliff?” We rolled a big spliff and we’re talking about stuff and hanging out. She’d brought over this aphrodisiac bottle of alcohol from some island because she’s a model or something and goes to all these far out places. And we started drinking it. Couple more spliffs go by and then we’re kissing on the couch and she’s like, “I don’t think we can do this in case Alex comes by.” So we just hopped in her rental car and just, ah, spent the night in that somewhere. It was funny.

F E AT U R E

“There’sjustendlessopportunities.Whateverattractsmy eye.Therehastobesomethingcoolaboutit.Feeling. Truth.Somethingthatisnotfake,thathashistorybehind it-agoodvibeinwhateversceneitmaybe.Good people. Good times...”

I: How did Al take it?

Guatemala. My dad’s side is up north. We’re back talking again. We have our tiffs but she’s stopped drinking.

JM: I didn’t tell him for a bit but he said he didn’t care. But I guess it might have bothered him.

I: You live a very loose lifestyle. What ties your existence together, like, what gives your life meaning?

I: Despite the indiscretion, he maintains you’re one of the top ten longboarders in the world right now. What do you think of that?

JM: I see guys who keep surfing forever and how they keep stoked on it and the different things they’ve done through it. I got to do the two clothing lines with Insight and I’ve always been really into clothes. I like designing. That kind of just opened up things and I can always go back to school and study photography at college. That’s something I’ve always been into. So there are so many different things you can get into. Surfing has so many different opportunities when you’re around people.

JM: I dunno about that. That’s cool that he says that. I think he’s one of those guys. There’s so many good surfers out there that people don’t hear about that’s why I’m stoked on the Vans Duct Tape invitational. We get to go around and get whoever Joel (Tudor) likes or thinks is a good surfer in that style and get two kids from that area and they get to surf with us.

I: So life for you is about trying as many things as you can?

I: As one of Al’s top ten longboarders in the world, is it frustrating that you still find yourself painting houses for his dad?

JM: There’s just endless opportunities. Whatever attracts my eye. There has to be something cool about it. Feeling. Truth. Something that is not fake, that has history behind it - a good vibe in whatever scene it may be. Good people. Good times for me. Like out here in France, there’s a sick crew of longboarders out here. They’re all the funniest kids ever and really good artists too. They have art shows and the kids will be playing music at the shows and its really similar to our scene at home. And that’s what I love about surfing. It brings together all these people that you wouldn’t usually meet. It brings us together like a family, like the family I never had.

JM: (laughter) Yeah it sucks but if I can’t make enough money off surfing then I have to do something to survive and that’s what I’ve gotta do. It sucks when I’m painting a wall and Joel and Al come back from surfing and they’re like, “Whoo! We’ve been surfing all day.” It would definitely be cool to not have to paint walls and cruise around with those guys hanging out and surfing all day. It keeps me humble. I get a feeling of having a 9 to 5 job then I get to go on a surf trip and live that style and shoot photos and do what I want, play music, surf with these people. I: And how are things with your mum these days? JM: We didn’t talk for two years. She’d try to get a hold of me but I was off it. I knew she was drinking. It sucked at the time because it was my mum and my only family in SoCal. All her family lives in

F E AT U R E

F E AT U R E Ecotourism is defined as: ‘Responsible Travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the welfare of local people’ (TIES 1990). The definition is a little dated as you can now find cutting edge ecohotels in cities, such as E.c.h.o. in Milan. This ‘eco-labelling’ of hotels is also an area filled with false promises and ‘greenwashing’. Basically this translates as the hypocrisy of some hotels that demolished an entire ecosystem to be built but give you the option not to wash your towels everyday so it must be ‘Green’. Star ratings are also no indication of eco credentials - all that glitters is not necessarily green. As any kind of traveller you create a demand, especially off the beaten track where you are the first point of refernce fo many locals as to what is needed by a tourist. Therefore it is beneficial to educate yourself how to explore more responsibily and sustainably. Ecotravel however is a very general term and is open to abuse. Generally put you should seek out hotels that:

THE WANDERLUST ETHOS

WANDERLUSTING RESPONSIBLY BY ELECTRA GILLES

Use renewable energy sources as much as possible e.g. solar power, desalinisation units.

The problem with wanderlust is that is an intoxicating addiction like any other form of lust. The need to explore, discover new experiences, places and people can become all consuming. To have every sense heightened from unique tastes, touches and smells, that will evoke sensory memories for life. For those who make these journeys part of our life blood, we are far from lost, we are on the constant quest for beauty and knowledge.

Have a minimal impact on the local environment, indigenous peoples, religion and way of life. Some of the profits will be put back into the local community or environment. This can take many forms such education, health, replanting etc. ‘Fair Trade’ in tourism.

In our rapidly moving world today there is every opportunity for the global nomads, travellers, gypsies, vagabonds or the ‘Gypset’ to discover new landscapes and communities than ever before in history. We are living in a time of fast and cheap travel and countries traditionally closed to tourism are suddenly flinging open their borders to earn foreign currency. There are those such as Bhutan who are handling the situation carefully but this is an exception to the rule.

Community interaction. Education on respecting the local ecology during activities that may impact upon it including diving, trekking, surfing, safaris, skiing etc Use of local materials or low impact materials for the actual structures of hotels. Amongst the fashionista crowd and uber wealthy it has also become fashionable to be part of the ‘Gypset’ (Gypsy jetsetter coined by Julia Chapman who wrote ‘Gypset’ and ‘Gypset Travel’). This is capturing an essence of the Bohemian lifestyle but on a high budget and little time. The main charateristic now is that these enclaves have an environmental and social concience that was often lacking previously. A private jet however is hardly carbon footprint free so for those of us that prefer trains, sailboats and vintage motorbikes this mode of transport seems somewhat farcical to the entire ethos. Your preferred ride is also something to consider on an exploration.

There is a need in a traveller to feel that they are set apart from a ‘normal tourist’. Whether you are following in the footsteps of the great explorers Pizzaro, Marco Polo or emulating the Bohemian lifestyles of The Gettys, Yves Saint Laurent or the extistential journeys of Hunter S. Thompson or Jack Keruoac - we all have our individual travel heroes that hold an allure. Some are in search of the adventure, be it the perfect wave, peak, jungle or river. The main quest is not to be a part of the crowd who takes package holidays, or cruises as it goes against the need for autonomus exploration of both the planet and ourselves - for surely this is the main attraction of the wandering life?

The ideal of those afflicted with wanderlust is that they are usually alone or with someone like minded, their soul nomad! They prefer to travel to remoter areas and have minimal impact, but these are the intrepid souls who set the precedence for those who follow. They are the first to open up or move to an area and often encourage other people to these areas through the recanting of amazing tales and adventures. This is when the wanderer settles to an extent and on the whole establish abodes that are environmentally sensitive to the places they discovered and want to share this experience with their visitors.

For those of us who live in Bali this mainstream is represented by the vast edifices sprouting up everywhere and carving up the earth and the soul of Bali with each crane and piece of concrete. Mostly however it is the complete inability of this island and many other locations globally to deal with this rapid growth, therefore leading to wholly unsustainable development. It can be witnessed all over the world, but for the first time is happening in areas that traditionally had low impact development. For the true wanderer there is a need to find new places that have not yet been ‘polluted’ by huge hotel chains, generations of locals jaded by tourism who are on the take and of course the ultimate quest - natural and cultural beauty. For those who roam the globe, one of the greatest tragedies of all is to witness the deterioration of beauty through rapid and bad development. The only logical step for a new generation of global nomads is the move to travel responsibly.

If the restless wanderer is in you then you dictate demand, and a shift mentally has to be set to eco travel if you desire the art of travel to be preserved and respected for future generations in a wild and abandoned form. From the lone intrepid backpacking student just setting out to discover their love affair with the planet on a 5 stop round the world ticket, to the weathered old timer still in search of Shangri La in the mountains of Ladakh, there is one thing that can preserve the spirit of wanderlust. Be responsible in your journeys and choose establishments that reflect that, in order keep the essence of the global gypsy and wanderlust alive for a very long time to come.

Ecotourism is the fatest growing sector of the tourism economy, in 2012 it is said to take up 22% of the market and generate $473 billion a year. (Travel Weekly)A survey of Conde Nast Traveler in 2007 showed 74.5 % of their readers would be influenced by a hotels environmental policies. This reflects the demand for the true spirit of travel, not to conquer and destroy but to immerse oneself in a different natural environments and to saturate our senses with it.

Just remember when you are on your next adventure ‘Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does. ‘ William James.

F E AT U R E

WEST PAPUA

WEWITNESSSENTANILAKE,BALIEMVALLEY FESTIVALANDWAMENACARNIVAL. PHOTOSBYFABRIZIOPROIETTISALVATORI

West Papua is a province of Indonesia on the western half of the second largest island in the world. It is the most easterly province of Indonesia, and borders the independent nation of Papua New Guinea. West Papua became the twenty-sixth province of Indonesia in 1969, with the transfer of official power from The Netherlands to the Indonesian government. Today West Papua is a diverse province, with indigenous people of Papuan, Melanesian and Autronesian descent with people from other Indonesian areas such as Sulawesi, Java and the Malukus. West Papua is home to as many as 312 different indigenous people, with some still uncontacted, and 216 different languages. There are three types of indigenous people. The first are those live in coastal regions, process sago trees as their staple food and hunt fish. The second type are nomads who live upstream, process sago and hunt wild boar and other game. The third type live in the central valleys and cultivate the land with yam, canes and other produce. West Papua is also home to massive tracts of rainforest with high degree of biodiversity. I-Mag traveled to Papua recently over the high season to witness the diversity of Papua. The journey started in the capital city in the

bay of Jayapura, on the bay of Jayapura. From there we traveled to Lake Sentani, an area populated by many islands. Many of the people living there are Catholic and Protestant. Dutch missionariesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; first efforts started in 1855. At first their endeavors did not take off, but after World War II the number of native priests rose and in 1956 the Christian Church of Papua was established. The third stop was to the Baliem Valley Festival in Wamena. Wamena is the largest town in the Highlands of West Papua. Every year, people from the Dani, Yali and Lani tribes gather in traditional attire to stage mock battles, perform traditional song and dance, and have a pig roast. Tribe member are dressed in koteka, feathered headdresses, men are attired in the gourd and the ladies wear grass skirts. The festival is supported by the government. After attending the Baliem Valley Festival, we ran into unexpected event before we left the area. The Wamena Carnival was held, a gathering of all the schools of the town of Wamena, as an event staged mostly for local school children, but also for people from other places. The children dressed in the traditional clothing of their origin, whether Papua or Java. The carnival was not hosted for the tourists or as a profit-making event, but was for the benefit of the kids. Once a year the kids from different parts of Indonesia get together and can be part of the parade that crosses the streets of Wamena. Photos in order of appearance. Left to right, top to bottom. 1. A young girl and her Christian home, 2. A wooden bridge across Lake Sentani, 3. A fisherman living on Lake Sentani, 4. An indigenous man at the Baliem Valley Festival, 5. Baliem Festival group, 6. Getting ready for the pig roast at the Baliem Festival, 7. Wamena Carnival couple, 8. A mock battle at the Wamena Carival, 9. A man at the Wamena Carnival, 10. Two children living in Papua.

F E AT U R E

OUTRUNNING THE END OF SUMMER

ANACCOUNTOFWANDERLUSTGONEAWRYBASED , ONATRUESTORYOFNAIVETYANDHEATIN MUMBAI. WORDS KATIE ALLEN

It had been the most brilliant of summers, bright crisp days where the city sang out in its beauty about the possibilities of love and life and the river had sparkled into each plum colored evening. So when autumn loomed I took matters into my own hands and decided to extend the summer well into December by heading off for the golden sand beaches of Goa. A roster full of double shifts and covers ensured I had the money to survive and the means to return. As September arrived with a nip in the air I was packed, and on a blustery low sky morning an Air India plane swept me and my fellow passengers away from the grey of Heathrow into the tropical hues of the most written about place on earth… India.

company I really did think he was seriously considering me as some type of receptionist. When he, now quite close to me on the back seat of the car, an arm above my shoulders, suggested I might like to traffic heroin for him I actually laughed. I thought it was a joke. I smiled and tried to turn the conversation to something less ludicrous. He insisted that we remain on topic, the money would be good, I would only have to do it once… but wasn’t he the owner of a multinational import – export company? Well, yes he was, but it wasn’t mangos and chili powders. Nor was the car with my friends right behind us and it seemed dinner was no longer on the menu. I still didn’t really understand the situation I found myself in, my brain was just not coping with it… but I did at least recognize that that game plan had changed. I decided to be as charming as possible. I thanked the very important import- export man for his offer and told him that while I had to decline I did appreciate his thinking of me for the position. The car drew up to a high-rise apartment building, the man left without a word, and the door was shut in my face. Now the alarm bells went off, big time.

Oh yes, and it is everything and more than you ever dreamed, the food, the colors, the aromas, they are all there in Technicolor brilliance along with a cast of thousands that teem into every space, city street, bus, train and shopping mall… and I loved it. I drank in my first stop, Mumbai, like it was a stream of rose water syrup, sweet, cloying and addictive. Three days I had planned to be there. I was to look up an old friend now living well in a fancy beachside residential hotel near Marine Parade. Skinnier than I last remembered she looked well enough, explaining a recent bout of dysentery as the reason for her rather sallow complexion.

I had refused an offer my ‘friend’ was sure I would accept and I was now a liability. That quickly and that simply it was horrifically clear my night of glamour in Mumbai was about to meet a nasty end.

Her life seemed ordered, friends to meet and places to be, and she made me welcome and acquainted me with her boyfriend, a young, slightly overweight Canadian who seemed happy to entertain me when my friend could not. We ate out everywhere and drank sundowners on rooftops, and on my last night attended a party where Black Label had cachet and men talked nostalgically about their days in London, and where I didn’t see another woman.

The details needed no detailing, and you can use your imagination because I can’t use mine. I don’t need to. It happened in slow motion, in painful searing slow motion and when the needle was forced into my arm I stopped feeling anything at all. It was a miracle I woke up the next day, I am still not sure how I did. Naked, bruised and in a room in a seedy motel where my clothes, left on a chair, were folded. I stood shakily and reached for my once beautiful new shirt, now ripped and bloodied, I took my pants, slowly placing one leg in and then the other, a plastic packet of fine pale chocolate colored powder fell from a pocket. My bag was gone. Without money or any idea what to do I left the motel into the searing heat of the afternoon and made it two blocks down the road before I collapsed into a stairwell of a tenement block.

“Thedetailsneedednodetailing,andyou canuseyourimaginationbecauseIcan’tuse mine.Idon’tneedto.Ithappenedinslow motion...”

An old man appeared, from nowhere, or heaven, and took one look at me, his shock at my appearance could not be concealed. He went away and returned with a broken china cup of water and very carefully, very gently and very patiently he saved my life drop by little drop. He wiped my face as I vomited and he patted me dry with a towel when sweat broke out over me. We did not speak. He let me lie in his stairwell as the sun sunk beyond the satellite dishes on the rooftops. When I could stand without shaking he walked me to the street and put me into a taxi.

I was happily naïve, full of the bravado that accompanies the youth of the Home Counties, here were Indians extolling the virtues of a country I had come to hate, but seeing it through their whiskey rimmed eyes I saw what I had never seen, the privilege and the pride. I entertained them so well they asked me to return for a dinner the following night. I was due to depart for the beaches but the young Canadian said it was a very great honor and I should postpone my bus trip for a day or two. Charmed by the attention I agreed and the following night the three of us, my friend, her boyfriend and myself set off together. We met for drinks at opulent rooftop bar. Heady in a newly purchased India-appropriate outfit I thought I could get used to this glamorous way of life. Dinner reservations had been made and as we exited the hotel lobby I was invited into a car by our hosts and told my friends would be in the other car right behind us. Alarm bells may ring now, do you hear them? Because I did not. I was with friends after all, and I had met some of the guests the previous night. No, no bells, not even when the most senior gentleman complimented me on my good manners and said he had the perfect job for me. Not even a tinkle of alarm. So convinced was I of my hosts good standing and the elegance of our party that when he suggested I might like to work for his

I knew where to go. At the end of the journey I pulled myself together, asked the receptionist to lend me the money to pay the driver; hauled my aching body up the stairs and collected my things from the empty room. No one was expecting my return, that much was clear. I changed in the lobby bathroom, did as best I could to appear normal, paid the receptionist and took a cab to the airport. It wasn’t until I arrived in Goa that the severity of the situation caught up to me. Two days into my stay I was tipped off, or told, or warned, I have no idea, by an anonymous man who stepped towards me on the street that I was being followed, that people were looking for me. I needed no other explanation. I decided maybe it was better to face another cold wet winter than try and outrun the end of summer.

EVENT

VESTAL X SINGLE FIN LIGHT UP THE NIGHT ULUWATU - 7.10.12 PHOTOS BY LIFEWITHOUTANDY WWW.LIFEWITHOUTANDY.COM

F E AT U R E

F E AT U R E I: How did it snowball from there? C: From the Brazil trip I went to the States and Canada. I would come home and work and save up more money and spent years doing that between Europe, Morocco and India. B: Road trips up and down the east coast turned to flights to islands and Asia until finally I packed my bags and left… everything. I: What is the most wonderful experience you’ve ever had traveling? C: So many to isolate one! But I have such gorgeous memories of starting a huge trek with a group through the Himalayas and hurting my knee along the way, which forced me to stop and stay with a beautiful Nepali family. It seemed very daunting at first but ended up being the most special time…I ended up finishing the entire trek on my own which gave me a wonderful sense of confidence and trust in life. It was a poignant moment- realizing that the timing was perfect as it happened, it was very empowering as a young woman traveling alone.

BABYLON RAISING

INTERVIEW BY MARIAH PHOTOS BY NOMAD IMAGES

B: Deep jungle peru circa 1997, 3 days with shaman Don Jose and his introduction to the yage (ayahuasca) brew. Quite a perspective changer and the most frightening and beautiful experience in my travels to this point in time.

Chantel Barber and Blair Beattie epitomize the wanderlust journey and the gold at the end of the dust road. Both hailing from Australia, they have spent much of their lives between places such as Morocco and India, as well as the depths of New York City. They fell in love while living in Byron Bay. Chantel is the founder of clothing line Goddess of Babylon which incorporates her life experiences and imagination, and Blair joined on to take care of the business side. They chat about Ayahuasca, beach gang raids in Rio de Janeiro, Chantel’s inspiration and how new baby Arlo is changing their lives and how they travel.

I: What is the most dangerous and frightening experience you’ve had on the road? C: I was on a bus going to Ipanema Beach when a huge rock came through the windscreen. The bus pulled over and a gang boarded the bus and raided the passengers for valuables. We made it to the beach and I was sitting amongst thousands of people when two highly organized gangs raided the beach from both ends with guns and knives. A few people died and lots were hurt that day- but god bless the Brasilians- they were all back on the beach, shaking off their towels and oiling up. All in day in Rio de Janeiro.

I-MAG : Where are you from originally?

B: Traveling on a boat from Bermuda with the police in pursuit while trying to deduce who owned the boat!

CHANTEL : I grew up in a small coastal town on the mid North coast of Australia.

I: When did you first come to Bali?

BLAIR : Melbourne born and bred, both parents full blood Scots that caught the cheap boat to the other side of the world. Thanks mum and dad!

C: Early 90’s with my sister.

I: What was your experience growing up and how did that shape you to do what you do now?

I: How did you come to be where you are now?

B: Must be late eighties.

B: That’s not a question I can answer concisely, it’s a culmination of choice, luck, persistence, relationship, ambition, drive, stupidity and random chance.

C: I grew up in a large family in a beautiful home by the beach that my Dad built with his own hands in the 70’s. My parents still live in that house and its wonderful to return home now and again and remember my idyllic childhood of family and community and laidback country values. It was a really sold and secure foundation.

I: Do you equate spirituality with traveling, how do those two things tie in for you?

B: Melbourne Metro living was a place I wanted to escape from… quickly. After trying various studies and trades I ended up in restaurants and bars like most people clueless to their ambition… my guess is that this taught me most of what I did not want in my life and allowed me to focus on what I truly did.

C: I believe that traveling inevitable creates growth within us as it teaches us to meet each opportunity fully. It enables us to slowly lift the veil in order to connect deeper with ourselves and the mysteries of life. B: I think many people do, but it’s a little more complex than that. From a personal perspective travelling has been the vehicle of my spiritual journey, allowing me to taste, touch and feel various cultures and spend time with many teachers. It opened my eyes to my existence and what transcends that. But you can be spiritual without leaving the house and you don’t become spiritual by visiting a place, it is a life choice of dedication and commitment whatever path you may take. Without this it’s just another fashion accessory.

I: When did you first realize you wanted to travel? C: Geography class at school. B: Age 4. I: What was your first journey? C: At 18 I went on an exchange program to Brazil for a year just outside Rio. Brazil was an incredible country - igniting the beginning of my wanderlust.

I: What has been your favorite journey? C: All my trips have been amazing but honestly my favourite journey so far has been coming back to Australia after so many years abroad. Falling in love, making a home with a partner and having a baby- that’s been the ultimate journey that keeps unfolding every day.

B: On the interior I was travelling from age 4 and onwards, dreaming of Africa, then Amazon, jungles and creatures great and small. My first big solo voyage was when I was 16, across Australia to Perth, the seed was planted and now accessible.

F E AT U R E

F E AT U R E I: I understand you have a new family member, how has that been? What is it like being a father now?

and mature and be ready on all levels for something together. The business today is just a projection of our shared vision to create a fulfilling and happy existence. It still allows us to still travel and we spend most of our time in our two favourite locales… Byron and Bali.

C: Having our little man has enriched our lives in ways I could never have imagined. Our journey in parenthood has been truly magical from the very beginning- its an honour and privilege to be guiding him in his first years. I’m just loving all perspectives of being a mother and business woman…I love the mayhem of baby, business and travel in all its glorious colours.

I: Tell us about the Bali store, what has it meant to you personally, and what are you excited about? C: Our beautiful little store fell into our laps last year and its perfect for us. Its small with a niche feel and it offers something unique to Bali. Its a little bit down the road on a great shopping strip so it feels like you have stumbled across a hidden treasure when you get there.

B: Fatherhood is the pinnacle of my existence. Personally it finally gives me something bigger than myself in a physical form, it’s the ultimate ego squasher and surrender now tool.

B: The Bali Store was another opportunity we accepted. It was always a possibility but we did not actively seek it. A phone call from a friend and bang we signed up. We are really happy, it ticks all the boxes for what we wanted and we have the most wonderful team working with us. It’s always exciting to have a new project, especially one close to your heart. We are a small niche brand and we can’t wait to introduce our creations to the locals and travellers. We have been producing in Bali for many years now and the island really has an influence on what Choni creates, it just makes sense to now have a place to display her wares. Goddess of Babylon and Bali are a great fit.

It is a privilege and honour to take on the role of guide for a new life, joy happens, love flows, heart opens and a new fresh perspective on life emerges. It is challenging and quite a responsibility but the rewards are infinite and abundant. And best of all I get to be a ‘kid’ again! I: What is next for you? C: To evolve with my creativity, grow the business and enjoy life with the family and build on the beautiful life we have. One day we hope to own our own piece of paradise in Byron for the veggie patch and chook pen. Small goals but exciting ones for our little family.

I: What does it mean for you to live in the moment?

B: Personal: Being dad… loving Choni… staying healthy and nurturing more creativity

C: I’m re-learning the beauty of ‘living in the moment’ with my 1 year old son. He’s constantly teaching me this, pulling me back in the moment when the duties of life pull the other way. It’s a beautiful lesson learning through the eyes of a child.

Business: more delegation… expanding our Byron base… bringing Babylon to the worlds exotic locales… helping the ladies create more magic

B: It can be a challenge when running a multi tiered business to live in the moment I must admit. It is something to be constantly mindful of and my greatest teacher now in living in the moment is my son, Arlo. Every minute I cherish.

I: Do you still have the Wanderlust, how has the changed with a family expansion? C: We still have places we would love to see but I don’t have the wanderlust sting as bad as before. Its probably living between the two magical worlds of Bali and Byron Bay. After years of transit lounges I am quite happy living a simpler quiet life

I: What is your take on love? C: Love is everything and without it I would simply not survive, function or create the way I do. The love of my partner, child, family and friends means the absolute world to me.

B: Take one example, our recent trip to FNQ (Far North Queensland)

B: Ah… that ol’ chestnut. Big question. Honestly, I think it’s bigger than a person or a feeling… it is boundless, infinite and glorious, everything and nothing. It’s where we come from and where we go, it’s a place within us all that transcends us all. God = Love.

Pre-baby accommodation : remote, unique, exotic, bespokePostbaby accommodation : fenced pool, lawn, close to shops, park and beach We still have the wanderlust it’s just a different animal, once Arlo is a little older there will be less boundaries and we’ll have him riding ostriches in Botswana and chasing whale sharks in Mexico like we did in the old days.

I: How did you two meet? How do you know when you’ve met someone you want to build a family with? C: Blair and I met many years ago at a party in Whale Beach, Sydney. He was living the life of a successful photographer in New York with a taste for attractive Brazilian models…and I was still on my hippie trail between Morocco and India so it definitely wasn’t fireworks at the beginning. But he became a really supportive friend when I was finding my feet in Byron and then it evolved into something more. It was completely unexpected but entirely perfect in every way. It took a couple of years to let him into my ‘one woman’ show….but thankfully I let him come on board as the business would not be where it is now. B: Choni and I first met at a party in Sydney many moons ago during my LSD phase. Don’t think she pictured me as a potential partner for a long time following. We’d bump into one another and always shared that ‘wanderlust’ until she moved to Byron and we spent more time together and realized we were more than just friends after all. I think the family urge is what brought us together in part, once we committed it was inevitable. It’s all about trust, integrity, commonalities, shared values and lashings of lust!

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“Inrecordedhistorythereneverhasbeensuch anexplosion,thesoundofitwasheardover 2,000kilometersaway.Darknessdescended for days...”

WANDERING INTO MYSTERY AND HISTORY WORDS KATIE ALLEN, PHOTO BY DAMIEN

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In Europe following the eruption the year of 1816 was known as The Year Without a Summer. Snow fell in London in June, the skies remained darkened with the ash fall. As crops failed and horses starved, a German inventor was inspired to find horseless transport, leading to the invention of the Draisine, the prototypical bicycle. Despite the cold magnificent sunsets lit up the skies in brilliant, dusky oranges and swirling lights and were captured in oil paintings by J.M.W. Turner, and all across Europe people were suffering.

Sumbawa’ he drawled, as he leaned against the bar, ‘That place is going to go nuts soon. It’s about the wide-open ocean, roads that curve across the hill tops, the descent into brilliant bays housing nothing more than shanties. It’s about adventure and it’s about life, real life.’ It was going to be our adventure that was certain, whether the guy at the bar was right or not, whether we had slipped into a cross between “The Beach” and “On the Road” was unclear but Sumbawa was beckoning. A mere hop skip and a jump by plane and fast overland too, you can drive across Lombok by night be on Sumbawa land by 6am the next day. We had no leader like Sally or Dean Moriaty, but we had a map of some deserted islands and a good dose of wanderlust.

During this Mount Tambora-induced darkness, Writer Mary Shelley was in Switzerland with her husband Percy and friends, among them, Lord Byron. A strange and tragic life had already been led by Mary, her father a political philosopher, her mother, sadly dead before Mary was two weeks old, was a feminist. Young Mary united with Percy Bysshe Shelley, a political ally of her father’s, at just seventeen. By the time she was in Switzerland, at nineteen she had endured the death of their first child and had married Percy only after the death of his first wife by suicide. So in the unseasonable cold and darkness of days, witnessing the storms that ravaged the skies it might seem reasonable that Mary should embark on creating Frankenstein’s Monster. Sumbawa’s reach is long and nuanced.

If your idea of paradise is awesome food, empty beaches, tropical islands, leafy streets, sleepy towns, trekking atop live volcanoes, snorkeling and surfing , well here you are. West Sumbawa, it puts the Wow in the Wa and rather than bail you up at a bar and go all Alex Garland, Jack Kerouac on you I am just going to the give you the low down: Sumbawa has something for everyone. Oh yes, just one thing- go soon, the government is really looking to make Tourism, with a capital T, the big new industry. Starting with the honey!

Across America stranger things were taking shape as people fled coastal areas for what would become known as the American Heartland. Amongst these families where the Smiths who moved from the extreme colds of Vermont into the area of Palmyra, New York State and after a series of what can only be termed unfortunate events the Book of Mormon was written by Joseph Smith, and the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints was born.

The famous Sumbawa honey, the taste of which is slightly medicinal and heady with flora. This unique liquid is so prized there is a National Honey Week that takes place in July, where visitors can enter honey drinking competitions and enjoy a honey party. The Forestry Minister, Zulkifli Hasan, has said white honey from Sumbawa island’s forests has become the icon of Indonesian honey because of its exclusive taste and quality. He wants tourists to come just for the honey!

In recorded history there never has been such an explosion, the sound of it was heard over 2,000 kilometers away. Darkness descended for days on surrounding islands and everywhere a pall of noxious, acrid ash hung in the sky. A truly terrifying time for the surviving animists of Sumbawa who, while hoping the eruption was to drive away the foreign conquerors, must have been in fear for their lives.

However there is so much more to the cuisine, the local dishes have, naturally, a lot of fish and sea food including a fragrant local fish curry swimming in a turmeric and tamarind sauce. There is a traditional hearty goat soup and goat sate, we found ours in Samantha’s, Sumbawa Besar and just by the airport there is delicious Ayam Kampung at Warung Lemoggan. If you like a beer with your meal the Chinese restaurant, Aneka Jasa Raya, serves them cold with a vast menu of knock out Chinese foods.

Today on Sumbawa there is less fear, and a lot more interest in the volcano that changed the face of history. Although it is still active it is perfectly possible to take a wander on its slopes, moving from the villages at the base to overnight camps. There are plenty of trekking companies that will take you to the summit where you can relax, take photographs and enjoy the energy of the volcano that not only gave the world the bicycle, it gave us Mitt Romney and Frankenstein.

But now you have eaten your fill, let’s get going! The roads in west Sumbawa wind up the coast, and like the enigmatic bar fly said they are good roads, fast roads, curvy, scenic super roads. This is thanks to the government that wants people to get places, to places, from places. They want to get places too, there’s a lot to Sumbawa, a lot of spaces and places, little villages, small towns, big towns, poachers and pirates… Leafy, dusty, a little dry, littoral forests hug the jagged coastline and fringes of the population hang out more on the sea that the rugged hills that rise from shifting geological plates that formed the island and gave it its highest point, Mount Tambora, the still active strato-volcano that sits between the oceanic crusts of the northern tip of Sumbawa.

Volcanoes are not everyone’s cup of adrenaline so if it’s the surf that gets your pulse racing get to the westerly breaks, Yo-Yo’s Supersucks and Scar Reef, names of which give you a good idea of what goes on under the surface are all popular surfing destinations, and now the roads have improved, get there before it’s all Tambora! Island hopping is also a great way to pass Sumbawa time, little manned boats can be rented from the beaches of fishing villages to take you to the off shore islands that dot the west coast. Palm fringed and crystal clear they are home to the vagabonds of the sea and kindly men and women who like their independence, earning their money by selling a coconut or two from their palm frond homes. Coral garden snorkeling, shelf diving and beach combing can all be undertaken depending on the tides, but again, watch out for the Tambora effect as there are local pirates who like to dynamite the reef for fast fish and can leave behind a wash of potassium colored water shimmering with floating fish corpses. Tourism, when it does come will provide incentive for change so may be go now, come back, tell all your friends but remember to leave just one tiny piece of the puzzle unsolved. After all there needs to be somewhere that remains purely Sumbawa, a touch of mystery in all that history.

Mount Tambora has had an incredible, indelible affect on the history of the world. The meaning of the word Tambora in local language is ‘gone,’ literally gone as in disappeared, the fate of many who climbed but never was its name so appropriate as the day in 1815 when it jettisoned 12 cubic miles of rocks and dust and gas into the atmosphere causing untold deaths across the globe. While ten thousand or more inhabitants died instantly and almost 38,000 more perished as a result of the starvation through lack of crops. Rolling tsunamis spread out across the Java Sea and the impact of the dust cloud that were carried by the winds brought devastation to the inhabitants of Europe, and North America.

LUCID KUTA Photographed by David Murrell

Styled by KoolKeita @ www. leeandlovelace.com for Potato Head Beach Club â&#x20AC;&#x153;Summer Syndrome 2012â&#x20AC;?. Style assistant Mireya Manigault Hair and MakeUp by Bethany Colson for Balistarz using MAC Cosmetics www.bethanycolson.com Model: Tatsiana for So Wanted Agency

DREAMS

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SPREAD 1 Kimono by: Adam Pollina @ www.adampollina.com Earrings: Stylist’s own Silver bikini by: Maidenlove. Found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali. Feather caping gunung (rice hat): Property of Potato Head. Ankle boots designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012”.

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SPREAD 2 Chiffon peacock print dress and shoes designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012”. Feather airbrush art on shoes done by: Prayitno

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SPREAD 3 Silver egg dress and ankle boots designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012”. Buffalo skull earrings with chain and all rings made by: D.M.C.G. by Del Monserrat @ www.delmonserrat.com found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali www.horn-emporium.com SPREAD 4 Red lace and feather dress and leather and lace shoes designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012”. Headpiece: Found at Toko Central, Kuta, Bali All jewelry made by: D.M.C.G. by Del Monserrat @ www.delmonserrat.com found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali www.horn-emporium.com SPREAD 5 Wood skirt with leather top and wood skin boots designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012” Fiberglass shoulder armor designed by: KoolKeita Silver, copper, and gold rings made by: D.M.C.G. by Del Monserrat @ www.delmonserrat.com found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali www.horn-emporium.com Gold and plexiglas cuffs made by: Shanti. Found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali. COVER SHOT Purple studded leather jacket with gold rings made by: Adam Pollina @ www.adampollina.com Yellow and white tulle dress and boots designed by: KoolKeita for Potato Head Beach Club “Summer Syndrome 2012”. Necklace: Stylist’s own. Earrings and rings made by: D.M.C.G. by Del Monserrat @ www.delmonserrat.com found at Horn Emporium, Seminyak, Bali www.horn-emporium.com Special thanks to... Rico for Anantha Couture for making cover dress. Andi Prazt @ Puan’s Leather Fashion’s for making all the shoes and leather top for wooden skirt. Herry DJ for making yellow/white tulle dress, red feather and lace dress, and red lace shoes. Fadhul Aman (Uul) for making silver egg dress. Putu @ Lintang Bali Fiber for making shoulder armor. Lasmono for making wooden skirt. Ronald Akili Emily Baylis Tameka, Michele, Steve @ Potato Head and the entire crew! Widi

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ONCE UPON A TIME, ON THE ROAD WORDS & PHOTOS BY KATIE STONE

Wanderlust is not usually not what one would expect. It’s about humility, openness, surrender to the world around you and the people that live in it. The world is full of characters. I am one of them. As I discover them. I discover myself. These are slivers of time and space once upon a time in India.

FEBRUARY 23, 2011

FEBRUARY 24TH, 2011

My wake up call, in our quaint little bungalow in Arambol, Goa, is Pierre, our roommate. An opera-trained theatre director, who likes to sing, very loudly, in the shower. It’s not just his singing. When you combine it with his pure comedy and buffoonery, its something else entirely.

Imagine red dust, clay earth, blue skies, extra tall palm trees stretching to the stratosphere, smells of Indian spices and kurmas wafting from shack kitchens, cows crooning in their beach pastures, beaches for miles and miles, fire dancers, hoola-hoopers, musicians, smells of musty incense, darkness, walking in the night by candle light, long and frequent blackouts, power outs. We are living in fantasy and creating reality. Seeing all the beauty one place could hold. Now Imagine.

After attending to my morning errands, I took the Sunday off to chill out and get back to the important things. Halfway to the beach I was stopped by our friend, Fernandra because he wanted to have me taste his Lebanese home pizza recipe, basically chapatti, raw zatar spread, pickled olives, chili, tomatoes. We sat and chatted about nothing in particular, making small jokes about our vagrancy. What day of the week is it? I walked through the straw beach huts and, of course, got stopped again by Juan, though I narrowly escaped. I knew how that conversation was going to go. He’d been on the chillum way too early this morning. Not today Juan. So, dodging all the little worlds happening around me. I made it to the beach café, Buddha Village, to get my astrological chart read by a wild Croatian lady who had spent the last 30 years in Venice, Italy. Out of the goodness of her magical heart, she hands out wisdom to those who seek it. I still can’t fully recount what she told me. I ended up listening to this really vibey live band, Kundalini Airports and got a lift to another dimension by this southern French musician named Paco and the Indian drummer. His voice echoed like on the verge of mahanirvana and his fingers in a rapid rhythm- I’m living on another planet. Later that night we sat at Babas table, I call him the GodBaba with the long white beard, he’s a Dutch Indian who comes back to Goa to smoke chillums all day and take court with all of his friends from over the many years. He’s been here so long he actually spent his 16th birthday on this beach. I watched how they smoked the chillum with care. It’s a wooden cone shaped pipe about half a foot long. It is packed with charras and smoked with intent and ritual. Before taking one deep inhale, the smoker takes the chillum with both hands to his forehead in blessing, takes an obscenely long, slightly violent hit, then brings the chillum to his forehead again. It seems sacred.

FEBRUARY 26TH, 2011 When we finally arrived back in Bombay, an Indian man woke us up by taking a nightstick and sliding it down the rows of metal ladders, shouting something in Marathi. It felt a bit like what a prison wake up call would be like. I fell back asleep, woke up and there were no more Indians on the bus, but we were still driving. We kept asking the same question, “Is this Bombay?” We got head nods, “Yes, Bombay.” We continued trying to communicate, “So, we are IN Mumbai?” Same answer, but no one is pulling the bus over. “Yes, Bombay” and some more unhelpful head nodding. This went on for a good 10 minutes. Fully feeling like I had a hangover, courtesy of the sleeping pill I had taken for the arduous night-bus journey and totally disoriented from being shook for 12 hours straight, without any food or water for nearly 15 hours, we were unceremoniously birthed onto the side of the highway, being hawked at by tuk tuks. We got help from a guy who can literally be referred to as The Siberian Panther Tamer, who lived close by in the jungle of Bombay and had lived in India for 15 years, and strangely had the language, dress, and gestures of an native Indian man. He was the White Siberian Indian Man. I’ve never met anyone from Siberia before. He helped us find a taxi on the side of the highway at 7 am. Nice guy. Many Thank You’s were expressed and we were on the way to Colaba.

“Iamanexcitablepersonwhoonlyunderstandslifelyrically,musically,inwhomfeelingsaremuch strongerthanreason.Iamsothirstyforthemarvelousthatonlythemarveloushaspowerover me.AnythingIcannottransformintomarvelousIletgo.Realitydoesn’timpressme.Ionlybelieve inintoxication,inecstasy,andwhenordinarylifeshacklesme,Iescape,onewayoranother,no more walls.” Anais Nin

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EVENT

EVENT how human lives in the Somalian conflict were being thrown away with little recognition from the outside world. Neglected, tortured and suffering the scarcity of basic needs, living under the constant threat of death each day was the story he and his fellow journalist Amanda Lindhout had hoped to tell, not live through. But live through they did, a harrowing 462 days of it, and the consequences and cost to Nigel’s family threw a ‘normal’ family into the midst of the chaos of international terrorism and hostage negotiation. The book, The Price of Life, written by Nigel, his sister and sister-in-law details the anguish that can occur when Wanderlust combined with the motivation to effect positive change is disturbingly derailed by the perception of the foreigner as a commodity.

UBUD WRITERS & READERS FESTIVAL OCTOBER 3-7 2012

PHOTOS BY ROBERT, UWRF MEDIA

Nigel admits he went in unprepared and idealistic and the cost to his family has been sobering. He now consults for companies preparing to send people off into conflict areas and hopes they can be better equipped.

GET SMART

I-Mag recommends buying the book, The Price of Life, not only it is an eye opening story of how really alone you are when the passport you hold means nothing but a cash bonus for your captors but buying it may also help to recoup some of the costs Nigel’s family had to incur to keep him alive. Through his sharing of his experience he remains undeterred and was heard at the festival talking of his next wanderlust adventure, a possible trip to Afghanistan.

WORDS BY JED SMITH

Big time literati don’t come cheap but the Ubud Writer’s festival is still the best exchange of ideas and creativity you’ll find on this island.

TOP TEN THINGS I LEARNED

It’s difficult not to be shocked the first time you visit the Ubud Writer’s Festival. Nick Cave definitely was. “This is actually great. I must say this isn’t what I was expecting. When I think of Bali and ahhh, the people I know from Australia that come here, I don’t picture this,” he told a crowd of lit buffs and intellectuals, with not a Beryl braid-head or Bintang Bert among ‘em. There is a catch, however, and that’s the price. For us schleppin’ economic refugees the festival is likely beyond our means at a few hundred bucks for a four-day pass. But then the likes of Jeffrey Eugenides (Virgin Suicides, Middlesex), John Pilger (The War on Democracy, New Rulers of the World), Jose Ramos Horta (Former freedom fighter turned president of East Timor aka Timor Leste), Nick Cave (The Bad Seeds, The Death of Bunny Munro, The Proposition) and many more don’t come cheap, either. The festival is as good an exchange of ideas, creative strategies and good old yarn spinnin’ as you’ll find anywhere. Eugenides - one of modern America’s literary giants - taught us to slow down, be patient with your work (it took him eight years to get his first piece of writing published). The obscenely prolific Nick Cave confirmed the only thing that got him into his studio every day was seeing his personal and artistic progression reflected in his work. So like, not money. And several locally based journalists and writers tackled the issue of Bali’s future, in particular the advent of cultural tourism (think Eat, Pray Love) and the “deceptive kind of conservatism” it breeds. “There is the fear that if the Balinese change anything or refuse anything the money will stop coming,” told Indonesian author and essayist, Diana Darling. Frick, we even almost got to see Nick Cave sing. Very almost. “No! Fuck you,” he told an audience member who demanded he perform during his talk. “I’m here as a writer.”

ATTHEUBUDWRITERSFESTIVALBYMARIAH

1. Jeffrey Eugenides started his book after he heard an offhand remark from a babysitter who looked after his nephew. She said that she and her five sisters had all tried to commit suicide at one point- “I don’t know why, we were just under a lot of pressure.” It became the inspiration for The Virgin Suicides. 2. The UWRF conferences are probably not a great place to look for a date unless you like silver-haired foxes. 3. Despite the re-writing of history, the Howard administration of Australia was hostile to Timor Leste and recognized the Indonesian annexation until its independence in 2002. 4. Prabowo Subianto, a top candidate to be the next President of Indonesia, is blacklisted by the US for war crimes in Timor Leste, and should be on trial for his activity as head of Kopassus Group 31. 5. The purpose of war journalism is to explain as clearly as possible the complexities. 6. “You can’t write a book until you can’t not write a book.” 7. Nick Cave failed out after two years in art school. 8. The only time Nick Cave was tempted to license one of his songs for commercial use was when a sanitary napkin company from New Zeland contacted his about “Red Right Hand.”

THE DIRTY HOSTAGE

9. Colin Whitehead said in response to disparaging, very generalizing remarks Americans, “America is like a toilet on a trans-Atlantic flight. You have to wipe the seat and leave it clean for other people.”

NIGELBRENNANWORDSBYKATIEALLEN

10. The concept of Paradise only exists in Abrahamic traditions. For Buddhists, for example, paradise is “just another stomp on the soul.” And the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival is a mindboggling resource for any reader or writer who lives here or is stomping through.

Asking Nigel Brennan, Australian photographer and journalist, about his Wanderlust was a good idea- despite his cautionary tale he still feels the desire to travel to the world’s least desirable places. Heading out to report on the human tragedy that was Somalia of 2008, Nigel was kidnapped by a criminal gang who saw him as no more than a means to an end, and perfectly disposable should the outcome be unsuitable to their demands. It became a tortured twist on the initial idea that was to highlight just

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RUDRAKSHAS, JESUS AND THE KING OF THE DEMONS

A CONVERSATION WITH SWATHIMAA, NINA & WAILANA OF SHIVALOKA INTERVIEWS BY MARIAH, PHOTOS BY BIANKA

F E AT U R E What have you learned from traveling? A lot about myself, in terms of what I could handle, how adaptable I could be. I learned a lot about people. But, once I met my teacher in India, Sri Kaleshwar, the real journey began. He brought me faceto-face with the soul that is me and showed me what I’m really capable of. Personally, I’m a rusher, I always feel a pressing need to get things done. How can we relieve ourselves of this existential anxiety and other daily distractions? Hey, there’s nothing wrong with going fast! The problem is the anxiety. Acceptance is key. It makes it possible to be present, in the moment. We’re usually not. We get caught up, stuck in our minds, thinking, worrying about things in the past or the future. It really disturbs us. I found the only cure for my own crazy monkey-mind was meditation. Along the way, it transforms you. You can handle pressures much more peacefully and respond with clarity. Going fast is no problem. What if we could incorporate acceptance and joy and having fun into every moment, whether we’re working a cash register, running errands at the bank, or stuck in traffic. I’m inspired by the Balinese, who seem to possess these qualities. Doesn’t spirituality mean accepting human absurdness and being able to laugh and love at every turn, in every moment of our lives, no matter if we’ve been eating our vegetables and mediating or not?

INTERVIEW WITH SWATHIMAA

Sure. An Accepting nature, like the Balinese have, produces a kind of blissful detachment. Many people misinterpreted this quality as naiveté or being ‘simple’, in the derogatory sense. But, it’s a core part of living a spiritual life. I admire how the many Balinese receive adversities with a smile.

SPIRITUALLEADER&FOUNDEROFSHIVALOKA

What is your background? Where were you born, what was your experience growing up, what lessons did you garner from your family system?

What is spirituality to you? How would you describe a higher power, or oneness?

I was born in Germany. My family still lives there. My parents were really supportive. They let me make my own decisions. I had a great deal of freedom. When I was 16, I quit school and left to travel the world. Thinking back on it, it’s kind of amazing they let me leave so young. I don’t know if I could do that if I had a child. But, for me, it was a great gift. I was free to follow my heart. And, it taught me responsibility.

For most of us, being in the body, our focus is primarily on the physical. ‘Oneness’ seems too intangible because ‘Oneness’ transcends the body. To experience it, you need more tools than just the body. Spirituality is a set of tools that offer ‘Oneness’ or ‘Enlightenment’ as a direct experience and deep understanding. But, practicing ‘spirituality’ isn’t the sole ingredient in living a spiritual life. When everyone’s happiness becomes your happiness and everyone’s suffering becomes your suffering and you know how to relieve that suffering, that’s a spiritual life.

If there was a negative to growing up that way: at times, I made bad decisions, took some stupid detours, ones I could’ve avoided, if I’d had more guidance or ‘boundaries.’ But, independence was thrilling. Life was all about possibilities. Mistakes were just part of the process. They never really deterred me.

To me, a ‘higher power’ means exactly that: divine power or ‘shakti’. Shakti means both soul power and divine power. When you build your soul power to a certain level, through meditation, you start to experience and recognize the divine nature of it, of yourself. It doesn’t have to take long to realize you are your higher power.

When was the first instance you could remember wanting to know more about our connectedness? Did you have any influences of religion when you were younger?

I see you spent a lot of time in an Indian Ashram, what lead you there, and what did you stay for?

We were living in Damascus on top of a hill and every night the prayers from the mosque in the valley below cradled me to sleep. I was only three or four years old. I was too young to put it into words at the time but I remember vividly going into trance states a few times, where I couldn’t move my body. I was conscious and experiencing this thick-like-honey energy descending over me but I had no idea what was happening. Years later, once I started a strong meditation practice, I recognized the experience. I felt connected to something bigger than myself.

It was time. And, my guru pulled me there. What did I stay for? To serve a bigger purpose than my ego and false desires. To heal myself and then learn to heal others. To study the most mindblowing spiritual knowledge available on this planet. To see the Divine physically manifest in front of me with my own two eyes. Have you ever found inspiration in Christian teachings? I have a very strong connection to Jesus, but not in the sense of the Christian church. Jesus came to India and lived there to an old age. There’s proof, evidence of this—scriptures, written in ancient palm leaf books, that I’ve seen with my own eyes, which tell the real story. He gained his miracle abilities in India. For sure, it’s different from what we’ve been taught. I hope this isn’t offending anyone. But, it’s true.

As far as religion goes, my family didn’t influence my personal beliefs in that way. They didn’t try to impress their views on me. That probably made me more open and receptive to other channels. Later on, I realized spirituality was a better fit for me than organized religion. Did you feel a restlessness to travel when you were younger?

Within the community of Indian saints, Jesus is recognized as the greatest spiritual master ever born. He did unbelievable things. He accepted and received whatever negativity came to him with

Oh yeah. In my teenage years, travel was like a wide-open adventure. But, by my mid-twenties, I felt like I wasting my time, not going anywhere. I set out looking for something, this ‘calling’. But, I was still nowhere near reaching it.

F E AT U R E a beautiful smile. Just like the Balinese. (smiles) His real legacy is coming to light, again, today. Read, “The Real Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ,” by Sri Kaleshwar. The historical proofs are there. What are we all so afraid of? The truth. Isn’t that a beautiful illusion? We don’t trust it. The thing is, there’s something darker in us than fear. It’s Doubt. Doubt kills our inspiration and distracts us from recognizing truth. What prevents people from living their highest potential? Belief systems. Five hundred years ago, Western civilization believed the world was flat until someone proved them wrong. How did he do it? By direct experience and knowledge. ‘Belief’ relies pretty heavily on judgment, misjudging, and prejudging, not discernment. Direct experience and understanding are better. The Divine is beyond belief but not knowledge.

What do you think is so magical about Bali? Have you had any supernatural experiences here? There’s a lot of magic here, more than Westerners realize. Most people don’t know the spiritual roots of Bali. Bali was the king of the demons—a big ego character—who at one time ruled the world. Vishnu overthrew him with a brilliant trick. Bali recognized Vishnu’s greatness and was so humbled that he became a devotee. In turn, Vishnu gave Bali ‘heaven on earth”, this island. It’s why the Balinese worship Ram and Sita. Ram is an incarnation of Vishnu. Bali’s an amazing sacred power spot. You can feel it, if you open your heart and look in the right places. What’s next for you? A trip to Europe to spend some time with my family.

How did you start Shivaloka? What is it all about? I was teaching meditation practices and needed malas for my students. Malas are prayer rosaries to count the recitation of mantras. In India, they are mostly strung with a very special, energetic bead called the Rudraksha. It’s a seed from a holy tree and recognized for its spiritual powers. Holy men and women have been wearing them since thousands of years. While I was living and studying with my teacher in India, I learned a lot about natural power objects, like rudraksha. They are a “short-cut” to receiving divine energy. They’re not all alike; and, even though they have an inherent power, it remains virtually dormant unless it is activated. The subject intrigued me so I researched it. You can buy Rudraksha malas almost everywhere in India. Many are fakes, made of seeds carved to look like rudraksha. Others, even though they’re real, feel flat, energetically. For some people, selling them is just a business. For others, they’re symbolic, like a traditional thing, created with good intentions. But, if you don’t have the deeper spiritual understanding and techniques needed to unlock the full power of these objects—or any ‘power’ object— you’re sort of missing the mark. My teacher taught me the difference. After studying with him for 5 years, one day, this internal direction came, ‘create Shivaloka’. I started to design and empower what I call ‘sacred soul jewelry’. You can feel their power when you touch them. And, you can see the effects in your life when you wear them. For me, it’s a perfect way to touch people’s hearts through beauty and energy and a way for them to receive powerful spiritual blessings. What have you learned from Shivaloka? It’s important to protect the authenticity and integrity of your work. When you’re helping people or introducing—in this case, reintroducing—a powerful, positive energy in the world, it’s natural you’ll encounter great challenges, including people who want to hurt or stop you. You have to recognize that these are a kind of test and handle them in a beautiful way. How did you come to Bali? I’d been living in Hong Kong where I had opened a spiritual center. But, Hong Kong is very urban and frenetic, energetically. So, I started taking students on retreats to beautiful Nature places around Asia. But when I came to Bali, I was hooked. Bali offers so much. Will you stay in Bali for a while? I don’t want to predict the future. But, I’m happy here now. What is your take on many of the common expat complaints and difficulties in living here? What can people do to harmonize? Be kind and patient. Be generous but smart. And, learn the language.

NINAMELINTERNATIONALYOGAGODDESS MOSCOW, WWW.N-CODE-RU/EN

What pieces of Shivaloka jewelry do you wear regularly and why? I own the beautiful “Zura OM” Mala with the 8-faced power rudraksha that represents Lord Ganesha. The power in this necklace removes all the obstacles from the Path and brings success! My boyfriend owns a Shakti Raksha necklace that increases a will power and faith and is a strong protection for the soul. We are both very happy with our choice of necklaces. But during a recent the photoshoot I had a chance to try on a lot of different Shivaloka jewelry. I am a yoga and energy teacher, I sense the energy and feel how the gemstones and rudrakshas influence our energy system. During this 2-day photoshoot I experienced some wonderful shifts in my energy while meditating, doing yoga or simply wearing Shivaloka malas and bracelets for a few hours. They are very powerful and helpful tool for those who are on the conscious spiritual Path. What does it mean to live in the moment? For me to live in the moment means to live in Gratitude and Acceptance. When we are grateful for what IS, when we accept our reality and ourselves in it, we will not want to “escape” into the past or the future in our mind - we will be” here and now”, totally in this

F E AT U R E moment. I practice and cultivate Gratitude which brings me back into the present. To live in the moment, to keep the mind in the present also means that we are open to any opportunity, any gifts and experiences of Life - we are able to notice them, to take them, to live them. All the blessings of Life come into our life through the doors of present moment and present mind. What is your take on love? Love is the absence of Fear. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a moving, evolutionary force, the force of our human development. When we love, there is nothing that can stop us. This is the state of the highest creativity and abundant energy, the state in which the best songs and poems were written and the best paintings were drawn. While the Fear is the stop break of the development of our full potential in love and all the other aspects of life - when we fear we get paralyzed and can not create, when we get paralyzed by fear of rejection, misunderstanding, jealousy and can not feel love that is always present inside us. So for human life, for a modern person I define Love, the dwelling force of creation, as the absence of Fear. When fear is absent, we Love- ourself, others, Life itself. What was/is your favorite journey? To Bali two years ago, because this journey evoked the deepest journey I ever took within myself. They say, Bali either accepts you or rejects you if you are not ready to accept its blessings. I was certainly blessed with the numerous coincidences that came my way that spring 2010. I experienced a profound spiritual transformation and my yoga style N-Code Practice took a new route in its growth. I recalled my past life experiences. I met amazing people and those you can call a real Friends even if you see them very seldom - one of them is Malte, the owner of amazing Villa Boreh hotel in North Bali and his team, with the help of which I visited the most sacred places of the island that are not mentioned in any travel guides, got the answers to my deepest questions and experienced numerous insights. It was an intense transformational journey for me. That period was also the first time I have visited Shivaloka store in Ubud and fell in love with the jewelry and the invisible energy power behind them.

WAILANA SIMCOCK DANCE

CHOREOGRAPHER&AERIALARTISTHAWAII, WWW.WAICOMPANY.COM

What pieces of Shivaloka jewelry do you wear regularly and why? I have the hanuman mala and some bracelets. They were the ones I was instantly attracted to. I loved its masculinity, strength, and dark colors- just beautiful. And when I learned about the different seeds and stones, I was hooked! What does it mean to live in the moment? It means to love and embrace the present situation, not the one you wish it to be, but the one in hand. What is your take on love? Love is everything, we all know this deep down. I think learning how to truly love yourself however is a must. From there we can extend that love with true grace. 4. What was/is your favorite journey? My favorite journeys are ones that not only take me to remote and beautiful places out there, but where journeys give me a sense of arriving home as I encounter these places and meet its people. It feels like meeting my destiny. I like to travel where I can also engage with the community, as in teaching or performing - or whatever! swathimaa@omshivaloka.com

F E AT U R E

F E AT U R E As we passed a small area of jungle, helplessly waiting for it’s inevitable fate, we felt the horror of this destruction, and the most surprising thing is, apparently this is legal. Right now my feelings are overwhelmed I feel sadness and frustration. My frustration is fuelled with the desire protest to the government of Indonesia: “Who can allow these huge companies to take everything?” My sadness is for the lost spirits of the jungle, flora-fauna, river protectors, and the ghosts of our ancestors who lived on this land for generations, only to be forced off their homes in a moment in order for people living so far away to make a huge profit. God speaks, the devil whispers, but money talks… Our thoughts are filled with the hopes and prayers of the mothers and elders in the small village where we spent the night. With all their energy, they are trying to protect the forest, their home, from the aggressive threat of investors.

THE ‘LAW’ OF THE JUNGLE

WONDER LOST WORDS GEDE ROBI SUPRIYANTO PHOTOSBYULETIFANSATI,RIOHELMI

I can still smell the sweat and tears of a grandmother helplessly gazing on her land that has been raped by a palm oil plantation. This company filled the river with soil cutting off the water source she and her family depend on. Now this grandmother must walk for kilometers over hills to access clean drinking water during the dry season. I still see clearly the anger of a village elder who stands by to protect the few remaining durian trees after a huge company destroyed the fruit plantations of his village.

After raising funds to tour Borneo earlier this year Indonesian rock band Navicula set out on a tour of Borneo. Freshly returned from Canada, relieved to be back on home soil and looking forward to seeing the legendary jungles, the band was full of enthusiasm for what they had dreamed would be an amazing experience. Nothing, despite what they had seen in Gunung Leser National Park and at the Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre of Bukit Lawang could have prepared them for the sights that awaited them. On tour, moving further in to the jungle on dirt bikes with a Greenpeace team, Robi, lead vocalist and guitarist, began to detail what he was witness to… wonder lost.

I can still feel the trauma of this village, intimated by armed forces and laws that protect companies. The indigenous people have been turned not just into victims, but criminals. Even now, the chief of this village is in jail for trying to protect his village’s land rights. As the rainforest dies, the welfare of its people die with it. What I saw in Kalimantan is beyond greed. It is evil. Across the desert of destruction a few protected trees still stand like the Ramin tree, endangered and ‘protected’ it is left uncut but alone. The companies don’t cut these trees because it is illegal. But these lonely Ramin will not last long without the protection of other trees around them. They are a part of the forest, its canopy should protect them, they cannot live alone.

As we promised the public earlier this year, my band Navicula raised funds to hold a tour of Kalimantan, Borneo and to witness with our own eyes the last Indonesian rainforest. The tour was in undertaken in collaboration with Greenpeace Indonesia’s “Eyes of the Tiger”, in partnership with a number for local organizations across Kalimantan such as WALHI (Friends of the Earth Indonesia) and AMAN (Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago).

This is the jungle and it is under the ‘law’ of destruction. The other trees are long gone; pulped and turned into paper. Soon, even these Ramin will be lost, burnt into submission by the harsh sun of the equator, and finally finished off by the dominating egotistical palm oil trees who prefer the land to themselves. Sucking up what little nutrient is left they are a monoculture system that not many other plants can live well beside.

When we left for Borneo we imagined we would be travelling through lush rainforest, the iconic imagery that Kalimantan is world famous for. Welcome to the jungle? Guess again!

The legal system has failed.

The tour quickly turned into “searching for the jungle of Kalimantan”. The majority of the rainforest in the areas we passed through had already been destroyed to make way for the palm oil and mining companies. We saw thousands of hectares of freshly cut forest, the last remaining habitat of the critically endangered Orangutan and Hornbill bird, had been destroyed. This was to be our journey’s landscape from Palangkaraya to Pontianak.

Mountains are split, and wide paved roads are built connecting distant areas in the name of development. But this is not for development; it is not for the people. It is simply routes needed to distribute harvests of palm oil and mining. A failed development, a propaganda, chasing only economic development, and leaving behind a loss greater than anything gained; how vast is the jungle that has been destroyed, how polluted is the water around, how poor are the indigenous people there?

Five hours outside of Pontianak, millions of tree trunks bled from their slaughter in an area of peat land swamp as the temperature rose to beyond 40 degrees from the released carbon that was heating the air.

Hidden away from the world’s eyes a huge potential disaster is brewing. We need to act now because we are already too late, imagine if we wait even longer.

Vast areas that not long ago were lush rainforest have now become a graveyard. Gone are the songs of the birds and call of the gibbon instead the arrogant sound of bulldozers and excavators dragging and clawing everything from the earth that they can to fulfill an endless hole of greed.

Can we work together to protect the remaining rainforest and help restore what has been destroyed? If we can’t we might as well start counting down to our own destruction.

F E AT U R E

F E AT U R E Masih terngiang di kuping kami, harapan dan doa para ibu serta tetua di kampung pedalaman tempat kami bermalam, yang sekuat tenaga menjaga hutan sebagai rumah tempat mereka hidup dari ancaman investor. Masih tercium aroma keringat dan airmata seorang nenek yang tak berdaya memandangi ladangnya yang dirampas oleh perusahan kelapa sawit dan menimbun sungai tempat dia dan keluarganya bergantung. Kini sang nenek terpaksa berjalan melintasi bukit berkilometer untuk memperoleh air layak minum, dan itu pun tak bisa dilakukannya saat musim kemarau. Masih jelas dalam pandangan, raut amarah seorang ketua suku dengan mandau di pinggang mempertahankan pohon durian yang jumlahnya bisa dihitung dengan jari, setelah perusahaan menghancurkan ladang buah-buahan warga adat. Masih terasa trauma warga kampung yang diintimidasi oleh aparat bersenjata dan hukum yang justru memihak kaum pengusaha dan mengorbankan masyarakat setempat, hingga saat ini pun kepala desa kampung itu masih di dalam penjara karena menuntut lahan haknya.Hutan mati, kesejahteraan masyarakat ikut mati. Bagi saya ini sudah melampaui keserakahan. Ini sudah keji namanya.

HUKUM (MENGHANCURKAN) RIMBA

TEXT BY GEDE ROBI SUPRIYANTO VOKALIS/GITARIS NAVICULA

Di gurun ini, sejumlah pohon langka seperti Ramin, sengaja tidak dibabat pihak perusahan karena ada aturan legal untuk melindungi pohon ini. Tapi Ramin-Ramin itu telanjang dan akan ikut mati segera, karena mereka tidak bisa hidup sendiri, sementara temanteman pohon lainnya sudah almarhum, lumat menjadi bubur kertas. Dalam waktu dekat, Ramin-Ramin ini akan binasa juga, terpanggang di suhu sepanas neraka ini, dan terbunuh untuk kedua kalinya dalam kepungan kebun monokultur sawit yang egois, alias tidak mau hidup berdampingan dengan tanaman lain. Aturan legal itu semu.

Seperti yang telah kami janjikan kepada publik bahwa band kami, Navicula, melanjutkan kampanye lewat musik ke Borneo (Kalimantan) untuk meningkatkan kesadaran bersama pentingnya menjaga habitat hutan hujan di Indonesia, melanjutkan kampanye Orangutan kita yang berlangsung sejak Desember 2011. Di tur ini kami berkolaborasi dengan tur Mata Harimau dan Kepak Sayap Enggang, sebuah tur yang digagas oleh Greenpeace, bekerjasama dengan sejumlah organisasi lokal Kalimantan seperti WALHI (Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia) dan AMAN (Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara).

Jalan-jalan beraspal dibangun membelah gunung dan mencapai pelosok, dan dengan gembar-gembor mengatasnamakan pembangunan. Tapi di sini kami melihatnya beda. Di mana jalan raya dibangun, di situlah jalur distribusi sawit dan hasil tambang. Bukan untuk masyarakat. Pembangunan semu yang dipropaganda untuk mengejar pertumbuhan ekonomi ini tidak sebanding dengan kerugian yang dihasilkan; seberapa luas hutan hancur, seberapa terpolusikannya sumber air sekitar, seberapa terpuruknya ekonomi masyarakat lokal, seberapa banyaknya kebijakan lokal dan kekayaan budaya yang punah, seberapa mengerikannya potensi bencana alam di waktu mendatang dalam waktu dekat.

Awalnya kami membayangkan bahwa tur di Borneo ini bakal menjadi sebuah perjalanan yang melintasi kawasan hutan hujan dan rimba yang asri, yang sekian lama telah menjadi ikon Kalimantan. Welcome to the jungle? Ternyata tidak. Tur ini telah berubah tema menjadi â&#x20AC;&#x153;mencari hutan di Kalimantan.â&#x20AC;? Sebagian besar hutan telah dirusak oleh ekspansi perkebunan kelapa sawit dan tambang. Bahkan kami dengan mata kepala sendiri menyaksikan puluhan ribu hektar hutan alami, rumah bagi Orangutan dan Enggang, yang baru saja dihancurkan, di sepanjang perjalanan dari Palangkaraya menuju Pontianak. Lima jam sebelum memasuki Pontianak, jutaan tunggak bangkai pohon di area gambut ini masih merah dan berdarah saat kami menyusuri kanal yang baru dibangun, di bawah suhu yang melampaui 40 Celcius, akibat lahan gambut yang dibongkar-perkosa sehingga melepas segunung karbon ke angkasa.

Saudara-saudari, sekarang saja kita beraksi sudah terlambat namanya, apalagi menunggu nanti. Mari bulatkan suara untuk melindungi hutan yang tersisa dan memperbaiki yang telah dirusak. Buka mata hati, karena jika tidak, kita semua tinggal menghitung mundur menuju kehancuran negara tercinta ini. Salam cinta dari rimba terakhir yang tersisa.

Kawasan yang kemarinnya hutan ini tiba-tiba menjadi gurun, Padang Kurusetra. Lenyap sudah nyanyian burung-burung dan jerit siamang, berganti arogansi deru mesin buldozer dan ekskavator yang masih meraung, merangsek membantai secuil hutan yang masih tersisa, yang pasrah menunggu giliran untuk dieksekusi mati. Dan yang tak masuk di akal, semua ini berkesan legal. Perasaan geram dan sedih bercampur aduk. Kegeraman itu mengandung protes saya terhadap pemerintah Indonesia yang telah memberikan ijin itu terjadi dan perusahanperusahan raksasa yang telah mengerahkan daya dan muslihat untuk melahap sebesar mungkin keuntungan yang diperas dari alam ini. Kesedihan kami mengandung jeritan spirit-spirit hutan, flora-fauna, ruh sungai, dan arwah nenek moyang yang telah mendiami tanah ini selama berabad-abad, serta nasib anak cucu negeri ke depan, yang dibumihanguskan demi keuntungan segelintir manusia tamak nan kejam. Tuhan bersabda, Setan berbisik, tapi uang bicara.

F E AT U R E

A HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY WORDS & ARTWORK BY ANNISA DHARMA

I am in lust with wandering. I am addicted to exploring. I am a full-time tourist and on my nomadic shenanigans, I am more absorbent than a four-ply Bounty paper towel*.

4. I once asked a bunch of Jakartans what they love most about the city, which prompted in many a rant or two, but said rant always ended with a: “…but still, at least there’s the food.” The streets of Jakarta are a smorgasbord of culinary delight, and personally, it remains unbeatable to this day.

*May drip with ignorant sarcasm – do not read without a sense of humor.

5. Street fashion in Jakarta is some proper grade-A shit.

THINGSILEARNEDWHILELIVINGIN...

BANGKOK

1. At the movies, stand up with the masses, put your hand on your chest, and pay tribute to the King. Regardless of how awkward it makes you feel at first, it’s a beautiful tradition that buffers the longass movie previews that follow.

MONTREAL

1. In winter when it’s minus 36 degrees Celsius out and your breath is more visible than a hookah puffer’s at a shisha lounge, be patient about getting that first lick of the Popsicle you just bought at the local dépanneur – getting your tongue stuck to a telephone pole was cute when you were 7, maybe 8 years old max, getting your tongue stuck to a mango-flavored stick of ice will never be never cute.

2. Bangkok is NOT all dick and debauchery, although, that said, do check for the dick before pick up (unless the phallically-equipped female was your intention in the first place). 3. An attractive, lesbian tattoo artist named Joey may coax you into getting your tongue pierced for free at 1 am on a Friday night. If you run into Joey, tell her Annisa says, “You got it crooked, bitch. I can’t taste ‘salty’ anymore.”

2. Walking around downtown in heels does not work in Montreal for the same reason it does not work in Hong Kong – it’s a topographic nightmare. 3. Being a Montrealer does not necessarily mean being a Canadian, just as speaking French Canadian does not necessarily mean speaking French.

4. Spending a whole day on your own, aimlessly wandering the streets of Bangkok without a map or getting into a taxicab is an absolute must-do.

4. The Québécois staple dish poutine is topped with cheese curds, not grated cheese. If you compensate with the cheese, then call it what it is: American cheese fries with gravy.

5. L reads as N, R reads as a silent L, but the R that reads as silent L does not read as N.

BALI

5. If all else fails, join the circus (du Soleil).

1. A big fish in a small pond is still fishy.

JAKARTA

2. There is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), and then there’s Bali Mean Time (BMT). With Bali Mean Time, you add 2 hours (or 2 weeks) to the specified time. So when someone says, “See you at 4!” it usually means see you at 6. That is how you tell time in Bali.

1. In North America, you get pulled over for being black (or brown or yellow). In Jakarta, you get pulled over for being white. (Note: this is a biased generalization based on the pedantic police’s notion that expats have more money than locals hence are more susceptible to coughing up more bribe money on the spot for a traffic infringement.)

3. Bubble mentality existed in Bali even before the term sprouted to coin the Republican Party during the recent US Presidential debates. Learn to think outside the bubble.

2. Urban angst breeds vibrant creativity – Jakarta’s art and music scenes are some of the most innovative, eclectic, pulsating, stimulating scenes I have ever witnessed. Know where to look.

4. Everyone is nice but not everyone is good. Being nice does not equal being good. A good friend is someone you hang out with while the sun is out.

3. Hustlin’s the name of the game. Jakartans are extremely creative in thinking of ways to make a profit, no matter how small. Take for example the 3-in-1 car jockeys, or the umbrella-carrying kids that magically appear when it starts raining. When Jakarta hits rain season and it starts to flood, you’ll find someone who rents out their rubber floatie to transport you across the street that has transformed into a brown river.

5. Bali is pure love. Truly, it is.

FINAL WORD

“NOT ALL THOSE WHO WANDER ARE LOST.” J. R. R. TOLKIEN